Twist of Fate
by Heidi13
Summary: My rendition on Will and Sonny, if they just met. I have tweaked the current storyline to fit this story. DISCLAIMER: Characters do not belong to me, unfortunately. All rights belong to NBC and Days of our Lives.
1. Chapter 1

**I had this idea. I have no clue if this is any good or not. I just love the idea of creating a different background for Wilson. I have read a couple of them lately and I loved them so much! I thought I would give it a shot! So, if you want me to make this into a full fledged story let me know! I hope you like it!**

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Babe, I have to. I'm not making enough at The Pub. I need a second job and this place is hiring."

"But we will never see each other with you working two jobs, both of us going to school, and Ari."

"I know. But we need more money than what I make at The Pub. And you aren't working. What else am I supposed to do?"

"You know I can't work with my school schedule and internship."

"Hey. I'm not blaming you. But I do have a daughter that I have to buy things for on top of bills. I have no choice. But if I get the job, you can always come there to study while I work."

Will smiles at his boyfriend, trying to convince him that this all can work out. "I'll call you when I'm done with the interview. Wish me luck!"

Will leans in to kiss his boyfriend goodbye. "Good luck, babe. But I know you won't need it!"

* * *

"Welcome to Common Grounds. Can I help you?"

"Hi. My name is Will Horton and I have an interview with Sonny?"

The barista offers Will a warm smile. "Oh. Hi. It's nice to meet you. I'm Sonny!"

Sonny extends his hand to Will and offers a hand shake. Will grips the man's hand in return. The moment their hands touch, shivers run down Will's spine.

"If you could just take a seat over there, I will be right with you. I am waiting for one of my barista's to show up, so I can conduct interviews today. I sincerely apologize for this."

"Oh, it's no problem. Take your time."

Will turns and heads to the table Sonny pointed out. He can feel Sonny's eyes on him as he walks away. Will sits down at the table and watches Sonny. There is something about him that is intriguing, but he can't quite figure out what that thing is.

Will is lost in his thoughts when Sonny finally makes his way to the table Will is at. "I'm so sorry that took so long. Would you mind following me back to my office, so we can start the interview."

Will nods his head and stands up to follow Sonny to the back of the coffee shop. All of Will's nerves have all but disappeared. He feels this confidence that radiates from Sonny rubbing off on him.

"Ok, Will. Tell me why you would like this job?"


	2. Chapter 2

"Can I speak with William Horton?"

"This is him. May I ask whom I am speaking with?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. This is Sonny from Common Grounds."

"Oh, hi. How are you?"

"I'm good. Thanks for asking. I am calling about the interview we had earlier in the week."

"Yes?" Will asks, hopeful.

"Well, if you are still interested, we would love for you to work here."

"Yes. Absolutely yes! Thank you so much!"

Sonny quietly laughs. "I love the enthusiasm. Could you come by Monday or Tuesday next week to fill out some paperwork and meet my partner?"

"Your partner?" Will coughs out.

"Yes," Sonny says confused. "My business partner."

"Oh, yes," Will sighs. "I can come in Monday afternoon, if that is ok?"

"That's perfect! See you then."

"Again, thank you so much! I can't wait to start! Bye!"

Will turns around to face his boyfriend. "I got the job! Can you believe it?"

"That's great," he says, without enthusiasm.

"Brian, what's wrong? Can you please be happy for me right now?"

"Of course. I just hate that we will be spending less time together, alone."

"I know, but it will be worth your while. I promise." Will smiles up at his boyfriend with pleading eyes. "The time we have alone, I promise to make special. I promise I will make up for all the time we won't be alone."

"Oh, I like the sound of that." Brian says, lustfully. He grabs his boyfriend's chin and tilts his head up. "You know, I really love you. It's so hard being away from each other for long periods of time."

"I know, babe. I hate it, too. But at least we get to spend the nights together."

"And the rest of today?" Brian asks, hopeful.

"I am all yours," Will whispers.

Brian leans down and takes his boyfriends lips with his. Soft at first, then becomes more aggressive. Will is filled with lust as his boyfriend grabs the back of his neck and moans into his mouth. Will begins to fumble with Brian's belt, hit with the sudden urgency to have his boyfriend right here and right now.

* * *

Monday afternoon Will walks into Common Grounds. Sonny sees him immediately.

"Will! I'm glad you could make it." Sonny says, excitedly.

"Of course!"

"Can you grab a table? I will get all the paperwork together and grab my business partner, Chad."

"Oh, no problem."

Will was confused at the giddiness he felt about this new job and being around Sonny. He wasn't sure what it was about his new boss that made him uneasy, in a good way. He didn't want that feeling to go away. He doesn't recall ever feeling this way around anyone before. Will likes it, but it also scares him at the same time. _I have a boyfriend, whom I love. So, why does being around Sonny make me wish I was single?_

"Will? Hey, Will?"

Will jumps up, startled.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. Are you ok?" Sonny asks, concerned, putting his hands on Will's shoulder.

Will feels a warmth spread over his body, starting where Sonny touched him. "Oh, yeah. I'm fine. I guess I got a little preoccupied with my thoughts."

Sonny smiles at Will. "Oh, that's ok. That happens to me all the time. By the way, this is Chad. The co-owner and my business partner."

"Will, it's really nice to meet you. Sonny has told me great things about you. Welcome to the team."

Chad extends his hand with the introduction. Will stands up and shakes his hand, enthusiastically. "I am really excited to start. Thank you for the opportunity."

Chad and Sonny look at each other and laugh.

"I love his enthusiasm, Son." Chad said, patting Sonny on the back.

"Me, too," Sonny says, with a glimmer in his eyes. "Let's take a seat and go over everything."


	3. Chapter 3

"Will, you promised you would take her today."

"I know. But they scheduled me to work and I just started. It's not like I can call in. I've only been there a few weeks!"

"I understand that, but you knew ahead of time that I needed you today. Why didn't you tell your boss?"

"I forgot, Gabi. I'm sorry. Can no one else take her?"

"No. Everyone else is busy. Will, this is your daughter, too. You need to take care of her sometimes."

"Gabi, that's not fair. You are the one that came up with the arrangement. How many times have I told you I wanted more time with her…."

"And that is exactly what I am giving you. More time with YOUR daughter!" Gabi interjects.

"Let me call Brian and see if he can watch her while I am at work."

"Absolutely not! You know how I feel about him. It's bad enough having Arianna around him with you. There is no way I am going to allow him to be alone with her!"

"I don't know what you want me to do, then."

"Call your work and tell them you have your daughter today!"

"Fine. I will be by to pick her up in 15 minutes. Are you happy?" Will said, exasperated.

"Ecstatic," Gabi replied, dryly.

Will hangs up the phone and fights every urge to throw his phone across the room. He absolutely loves his baby girl, but hates dealing with Gabi. He figured after everything went down with Nick that things would be better, but they only seem worse. It's like Gabi blames him for Nick being committed to the mental hospital after he had that breakdown and almost lost their daughter. Will takes a couple of deep breaths and calls Sonny.

"Common Grounds, Sonny speaking."

"Hey, Sonny. It's Will."

"Hey Will, what's up? Aren't you supposed to come in soon?"

"Yeah. That's what I need to talk to you about."

Sonny lefts out a deep sigh. "Don't tell me you are already flaking on me?"

"No, no, no. That's not it at all."

"Ok. So what's up?"

"Well, I have a 3-year-old daughter and I can't find anyone to watch her while I work. So, I don't think I can work today."

"Oh," Sonny lets out.

"I'm really sorry to do this to you. And I wouldn't call you unless I really had no choice."

"No. I understand. Your daughter has to come first. Let me see what I can do. I will call you back in a couple of minutes."

"Oh, ok." Will hangs up the phone, confused. _What was that about? _

Will grabs his things and races out of his apartment. He has to go pick up Ari before Gabi has a shit fit about his taking too long.

Once Will gets in the car, his phone starts ringing. "Hello?"

"Hey, Will. It's Sonny."

"Oh, hey."

"I just talked with Chad. Just bring her on in. We really need you this afternoon. I will watch her in my office, while you work. I have paperwork I need to do anyways."

"Are you serious?" Will says, louder than expected.

"Yeah," Sonny replies. "We need you today. There is no one else that is available for this shift. And I love kids, so it's really not a big deal."

"Oh, man! Thank you so much."

"Hey, it's no problem. Just come in when you can, but come back to my office first."

"Ok. Thanks. Bye."

Will hangs up, relieved. He can't believe his new boss is being so understanding about this. Most would fire him over something like that.

Ten minutes later, Will arrives at Gabi's apartment. He knocks on the door and it swings open. "It's about time!"

"I got here is quickly as I could. Where's my baby girl?"

"Daaaaaaddy!" Arianna shrieks and comes flying across the room into her father's arms.

"How's my baby girl?" He smiles at his daughter.

She looks at him with her huge blue eyes, just like her father's. "I'm great!" She exclaims and nuzzled her face into Will's neck.

"Oh, sweetie. I've missed you so much!"

She giggles and says, "Daaaddyyy, you just saw me yesterday."

"Well, that is too much time since I've since my princess."

"Ok. Ok. I need to get going. Arianna, grab your bag." Gabi looks at Will, annoyed.

"What?"

"You know I don't have time for this. I have to get going."

"Fine. Go. I will lock up."

Gabi glares at him, "Fine."

A couple of minutes later, Arianna comes bounding out of her room with her backpack. Will grabs the bag and makes sure she has everything, plus something to keep her occupied while he works for a couple of hours. He picks her up and locks up the apartment.

"What are we gonna do today Daddy?"

"There have been a change of plans. Daddy couldn't get off work. So how about you hang out with me at the coffeehouse?"

Arianna wrinkles her nose. "But Daddy…."

"I'm sorry, sweetie. I wish we could hang out at the park like I promised yesterday."

Arianna sighs, "It's ok, daddy. I just wanna hang out with you."

When his daughter says things like that, it always chokes Will up. He doesn't know how he got so lucky with this little girl. She is his life. Will puts her in the car seat and then gets into the car. He puts in her favorite CD of nursery rhymes. Her face lights up and she sings along. In these moments, Will wouldn't change a thing about his life. This little girl makes him happier than anyone ever could.

"Ok, sweetie. We're here."

He gets her out of her car seat and grabs her bag. She is still singing the nursery rhymes as he walks into work. He nods hello to the other barista, who give him a confused look as he heads back to the office. He knocks on the door until Sonny answers.

"Can I help you?" Sonny asks as he swings open the door. He sees Will's gorgeous daughter with her wavy black hair that hits her shoulders and big blue eyes looking back at him. "Well, hello there. Aren't you a pretty girl!"

Arianna is shy around strangers, so she nuzzled her head into Will's neck and giggles. Will laughs at this and says, "Sonny, this is Arianna. My daughter. Ari, this is my boss, Sonny."

"Hi," she whispers with her face still pressed into Will's body.

"She's shy at first around people she doesn't know. But she usually warms up to them pretty quickly."

Will begins to set her down on the ground and she begins screaming. "Daaaaaaaddyyyyyy! Noooooooooo! Daaaaaadddyyyyyyy!" Alligator tears are coming down her cheek and Will lifts her back up.

"Baby girl, I told you I had to work. You are gonna sit here with Sonny. I will be right out here. You have your coloring books and your dolls….."

"Daaaaddyy, don't leave me," she whimpered.

Will looks at Sonny with apologetic eyes. "I'm so sorry. She usually isn't like this, but she's had to deal with a lot of changes lately."

"No. It's ok. I understand," Sonny smiles at Arianna. "How about we sit at one of the tables out there, so you can watch your Daddy? Would that be ok?"

Arianna nods her tear-stained face yes.

"I really am so sorry about all of this."

"Hey. It happens." Sonny smiles his warm smile at Will.

Will walks back into the coffeehouse. He lets Arianna choose a table and sets all of her stuff out. Her coloring books and dolls. He grabs her sippy cup and snacks. Then gives Sonny directions on how much she can have.

"Don't worry. She is going to be just fine."

He places his paperwork down across from Arianna at the table. She smiles shyly at him, as Will looks on. Sonny begins talking with Arianna as Will begins to work. He glances over at them every once in a while and sees that they are having a good time. Sonny is playing dolls with Arianna, instead of doing his paperwork and Will feels guilty that his daughter is distracting him. But Sonny doesn't seem to mind. He seems so comfortable and at ease interacting with his daughter, that it makes his heart constrict. _If only Brian was that good with her._


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey, baby girl," Will says to his daughter. "Did you have fun today?"

"I like Sonny!" Arianna exclaims.

"I could tell."

"When do I get to play with him again?"

Will laughs at his daughter's response. "I don't know, sweetie."

Arianna looks at her father with big, blue eyes. "Can it be soon? Pleeeease?!"

"You know I can never say no to that face. But we need to get you to bed!"

"But Daaa-dyyyyy, I wanna snuggle with you tonight."

"I don't know how Brian would feel about that," Will laughs.

"Do you love Brian more than you love me?" Arianna asks, innocently.

This question takes Will aback. "Of course not, sweetie. You know you're my favorite person in the whole wide world."

"Then why does Brian always get to snuggle with you and I never do," she pouts.

Arianna's comments tear at Will's heart a little bit. "How about I let you lay in bed with me until Brian gets home? How does that sound?"

"Well, ok," Arianna says, disappointed.

Will lifts his daughter up into his arms and walks her to her bedroom. "Pick out your jamas and then it's time for your bath."

"But Daddy," Arianna sighs. "I don't wanna take a bath. All I wanna do is sleep with you."

"Ahhh. We will get there. But first, it's bath time."

Arianna grabs her favorite Snoopy pajamas out of the drawer and hands them to Will. Then grabs her father's hand as they walk to the bathroom. During the bath, Arianna is going on and on about how much fun she had with Sonny today. And that she likes him way more than she likes Brian.

"Why can't you live with Sonny instead of Brian, Daddy?"

"Because Sonny is my boss and Brian is my boyfriend. Plus I love Brian very much."

Arianna sighs and continues talking about Sonny. After the bath is done, Will wraps her in a towel to dry her off. Will hands Arianna her pajamas and she changes into her Snoopy clothing. Then Will combs her hair and puts it into a braid. Next he tells her to brush her teeth. After she finishes, they walk hand in hand to Will's bedroom. Will scoops her up and sets her on the bed. He climbs on the bed and lays down on his side of the bed. She jumps on top of him, then snuggled into his side. Will wraps his arm around his daughter, pulling her closely to him. Will loves this little girl so much. It only takes a couple of minutes before she is asleep. As he lays there with his daughter pressed into his side, all he can think of are Arianna's words. _Why can't you live with Sonny instead of Brian? _Will is shocked at how quickly Arianna took to Sonny. He knew she really wasn't a fan of Brian's. Actually most of his family wasn't. But Will loved Brian. They have been through a lot together. _But is that reason enough for me to stay with him?_ Will doubts and kisses his daughter on the head. He falls asleep, thinking about Sonny's warm eyes and kind smile that was on display all night as he watched his daughter.


	5. Chapter 5

"I missed you last night," Brian whispers to Will and leans in for a kiss.

"Yeah. What happened to you?"

"I came into our room and I saw you two asleep. You guys looked so comfortable, I didn't want to bother you. Plus I had to get up early this morning, so I just crashed on the couch."

Will grabs Brian's hand and smiles. "You didn't have to do that. You could've joined us or put Ari in her bed."

"Hey. It's no big deal. Do you work today?"

"Yeah I have to be there in an hour. What are you doing today?"

"I was going to pay my incredibly busy boyfriend a visit at work after class."

"That sounds amazing," Will smiles and pulls Brian in for another kiss.

* * *

"I don't think I can thank you enough!"

"For what?" Sonny asks, confused.

"Last night. My daughter."

"Oh, that. It's no big deal."

"No. It was a huge deal. And you were all she could talk about for the rest of the night. I have never seen her act like that with someone she just met."

Sonny smiles and blushes. "I had fun with her. She is so sweet. I hope she said good things about me."

"She asked when she could hang out with you again," Will laughs.

"Any time you want to bring her in, that is fine with me."

The door swings open and Sonny begins glowing when he sees a man walking in. The man walks over to Sonny and Will, who are behind the counter.

"Hey, babe," the man whispers and wraps his arms around Sonny, then leans in for a kiss. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you, too. It turns out I have to close tonight. Do you want to hang out for a little while?"

"Of course." He leans in and whispers in Sonny's ear, "Plus you look sexy with that apron on."

Sonny blushes and tries to shush him. "By the way, this is Will. The new guy I was telling you about."

"Oh, it's nice to meet you." The man extends his hand and smiles, "My boyfriend has gone on and on about you and your little girl. It's a good thing you're not gay, or I might be jealous."

Will begins blushing and stammers, " i…it's uhh…ni….nice to meet you."

This makes both boys laugh. "Stop it, Neil. You are going to drive him away."

"I was just kidding. No one can steal you away from me," Neil whispers and sticks his hand in Sonny's back pocket. Then he whispers in his ear, "Especially after what I did for you last night. I can still hear your screams."

Sonny smacks him on the arm and whispers back, "Behave yourself." Sonny looks at Will and says, "If you hadn't figured out, this is my boyfriend, Neil. Who apparently likes to make my employees very uncomfortable. I'm sorry."

"Oh, no. It's fine. It's nice to meet you, Neil."

The door swings open and Brian walks in. Will smiles as his boyfriend walks over to them.

"Hey babe."

"Hey. You got out of class early."

"Yeah. He wasn't feeling good, so he decided to just let us leave after 45 minutes. Plus I couldn't wait to see you."

"Brian?" Neil asks.

"Oh, hey Neil. I didn't even see you."

Neil laughs and says, "That was apparent. Couldn't take your eyes off of him, huh?"

Brian smiles at his friend and asks, "Well, can you blame me? My boyfriend is gorgeous."

"Oh, so this is the infamous boyfriend. I was beginning to think you didn't exist. Brian here never brings you around. I thought he was making you up." Neil playfully hits Brian on the arm.

"How do you two know each other?" Sonny asks, curiously.

"We play on the same intramural soccer team. We've known each other for a couple of years. Small world, huh?"

"I'd say," Sonny smiles at the coincidence, nudging Will.

"Oh, sorry. Brian, this is Sonny. My boss. Sonny, this is my boyfriend, Brian."

Sonny extends his hand and says, "It's really nice to meet you."

Brian gives Sonny the once over and fakes a smile. "Yeah. Nice to meet you."


	6. Chapter 6

"Daaaaaaaddy!"

Will turns around and sees his daughter running in his direction, while Gabi stands in the doorway of the coffee shop. "Hey, baby. What do I owe the pleasure?"

Gabi looks at Will and scowls. "Arianna, what have I told you about acting like that?"

"I missed Daddy," she pouts, then raises her arms up at Will. He complies and picks her up, squeezing her tightly.

"I missed you, too!" Will smiles at his daughter as she buries her face in his neck.

"You can watch her, right? I have to go out-of-town for a couple of days. I have to leave tonight."

"Gabi!" Will yells. Then he sees Sonny come out of his office to see what the commotion is all about.

"Soooooooonny!" Arianna yells and wiggles so Will will release her. She then runs over to Sonny.

"Well, hello to you, too," Sonny laughs and then picks her up.

"Do you mind if I step outside and finish this conversation?" Will begs to Sonny.

"Yeah. Go ahead. I will watch Ari for you."

Will and Gabi head outside. "Explain. Now."

"Do you want to explain what that was all about?" Gabi asks, angrily.

"What are you talking about?"

"Ari and that guy. What did she call him, Sonny?"

"Sonny is my boss."

"Then why is Arianna so excited to see him? You know you have to approve all guys that come in contact with our daughter through me first."

Will laughs and says, "You can't be serious right now!"

"Deadly."

"You don't get to come into my work. Drop our daughter off without an explanation and then interrogate me. And don't even get me started on the people _you_ bring into her life without telling me about them!"

"Actually that's none of your business. So, answer my question. What is going on with you and your boss?"

"Really, Gabi? Nothing. I am with Brian, which you seem to have conveniently forgot."

"Oh, trust me. I have no forgotten about _him_." Gabi says, snidely.

"If you must know, I have had to bring Ari here because you keep dropping her off when I have to work. And he has been nice enough to not only allow it, but also has watched her for me so I can work."

"Yeah. I'm sure." Gabi says, sarcastically.

"Ok. That really doesn't matter right now. You need to explain yourself to me. Now."

Gabi rolls her eyes and says, "I have to leave town. I told you that."

"Why do you have to leave town?"

"That's really none of your business, now is it?" Gabi snaps.

"None of my business?" Will asks, incredulously. "It is absolutely my business!"

"Actually, it's not."

"Why are you leaving town? And when do you plan on coming back?"

"Something came up. And I said in a couple of days. What's with all the questions?"

"I work the next couple of days."

"I'm sure you can figure things out. Bye."

Gabi starts to walk away and Will grabs her arm, saying, "Not so fast."

"Owww. You're hurting me, Will!" Gabi shrieks.

"What the hell is going on here?" Brian walks in on their argument. "I step away to make a call and I come back to find this?"

"Brian," Will sighs. "It looks like we will be having Ari for the next couple of days."

"You have got to be kidding me!" Brian yells out.

"Trust me," Gabi says. "If it wasn't important, I would not be leaving my daughter around _him_ for a couple of days."

"Yeah. Because I'm the bad influence on her?" Brian asks, rhetorically.

"You guys," Will says. "Just stop it!"

Brian and Gabi glare at each other. "Tell me what is so important that you have to leave town right now and that you can't tell me when exactly you will be back."

"Fine." Gabi spats. "Mom is in the hospital. She is supposed to have surgery in the morning. I am going to be with her."

"Oh," Will whispers. "I'm sorry. Why didn't you just say that?"

"Because it is none of your business!"

Brian rolls his eyes and says, "I bet you're lying. Probably going for a conjugal visit with your hubby!"

"Fuck you, Brian!" Gabi yells and stomps away.

"Great, Brian. That was just great." Will sighs.

"What?" Brian asks, innocently.

"Why can't the two of you just get along? This bickering back and forth between you two is getting really old."

"I promise to make up for it later." Brian says, flirtatiously.

"Really? With Ari there?" Will asks, angrily. "Just leave, Brian. I get off in a couple of hours and I will just see you at home, maybe."

"You can't seriously be mad at me right now! You always take that bitches side over mine."

"First of all, her name is Gabi and she just happens to be the mother of my daughter. So I have to put up with her. But if you can't start getting along with her in some capacity, I don't know if I will be able to continue to put up with you."

"Will," Brian whispers with hurt in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize it bothered you so much."

"You can't be serious right now, Brian. We have talked about this numerous times."

"Yeah. But I didn't realize…."

"You never do," Will whispers. "Please just go home. I will talk to you later."

"Do you want me to take Ari with me?"

"No."

Will walks inside with Brian following closely behind. Brian goes to the table where his stuff is spread out and puts everything away. As he is walking towards the door, he spots Sonny, Will and Ari huddled together. Sonny looks up as Brian leaves. Brian glares at Sonny and then slams the door behind him.

"I'm really sorry about that," Will says to Sonny.

"It's fine. Is everything ok?"

Will shrugs his shoulders and says to Ari, "It looks like you get to spend a couple of days with Daddy and Brian!"

Ari's eyes light up and she screams, "Yaaaaaaaaaay!"

Will laughs at his daughter and says, "So, I take it you are excited?"

"Does that mean I get to play with Sonny more?"

Will looks over at Sonny, who is smiling. "You can come see me any time you want!"

"Yaaaaaaaaay! Are you gonna come over and play?"

Will's eyes grow wide and he says, "No, sweetie. Sonny will not be coming home with us."

Sonny laughs at Will and his daughter, who has begun to pout. "But you said I play with you anytime I want."

Will mouths _I'm so sorry_ to Sonny. "He meant visit him here. You get to play with Brian at home. Doesn't that sound exciting?"

"No! I don't want to play with Brian. I want to play with Sonny!"


	7. Chapter 7

"I'm really sorry about tonight, Sonny."

"Hey. It's no problem," Sonny smiles at Will.

"It is a problem. I've barely been working here and you have been drawn into way too much of my drama. It's really not fair to you. And honestly, I can't believe I still have a job after tonight."

"Will," Sonny whispers as he places his hands on Will's shoulders. "It happens. Life is messy sometimes. Don't even worry about it. You are a good person and a great worker. Plus you have the most adorable daughter, who thinks I am awesome."

Sonny smiles at Will with a gleam in his eyes. They both look over at Ari, who is fast asleep on the couch. She is curled up with her favorite stuffed animal, an elephant, and covered with Sonny's apron.

"She really is adorable, isn't she?" Will asks with pride.

"Yeah. She is. But you can go home now. I can finish closing up tonight."

"No. It's honestly the least I can do after all that happened today. Plus Ari is sleeping, so there really is no reason for me not to finish helping close."

Sonny smiles at Will, "Well, I tried."

Ten minutes later, everything is cleaned up and put away. Sonny motions for Will to take a seat at one of the tables. Will walks over and sits down where he can still keep an eye on Ari.

"Can you help me understand all that has gone on the last couple of days with your boyfriend, daughter, and your daughter's mom?"

Will is a little surprised at Sonny's questions, but not completely shocked. "I really am sorry about tonight."

"Will, I don't care about tonight. Everything is fine. But I need to have a better understanding of what is going on. Because I really can't have these things occurring on a regular basis."

"Oh, Sonny. I understand. And it won't. I promise."

"I want to believe you. That is why I need to know a little more back story about what all has happened."

"Ok. Gabi is Arianna's mother. We were high school sweethearts. But we broke up when I truly realized I was gay. We remained best friends until she met her husband, Nick, who just happens to be my cousin. We had Ari when we were both 18. When Brian found out about Ari he broke up with me for a while. He wasn't ready for a family and to help raise a child. Not that I blame him. That's a lot of responsibility to take on. And I think he still isn't really ok with being in Ari's life. Brian isn't a fan of her being around and Ari isn't very comfortable around him. That's why I was surprised she took to you so well. Ari has known Brian for a while and she doesn't act like she does around you, around him."

"How could anyone not adore that little girl? I am honored that she likes me so much, because I really do think she is a doll."

"Thanks," Will smiles. "A lot happened with Nick, Gabi, Brian, and I. We almost lost Ari a year ago because of Nick. He's now in a mental institution and Gabi blames me for his coming undone, which makes Brian mad. Gabi doesn't think Brian is a good influence for our daughter. Brian can't stand the way Gabi blames me for everything. So, they don't get along. Which is beginning to really take a toll on me."

"Wow, Will. I'm really sorry." Sonny says, sadly.

"Thanks. I thought things were getting better, but then I took this job…." Will trails off.

"If this job is too much, you should quit. I would completely understand."

"Oh, it's not that. Brian has this really bad jealous streak. He hates that I can't dedicate all my time to him. It's kind of exhausting actually."

"Yeah. Neil can be the same way. I love the guy, but he is definitely clingy."

"If you don't mind me asking, how long have you guys been together?"

"6 months, I guess. We met at a party that a mutual friend was having. He was a drunken mistake that turned into a relationship."

"Oh, wow. Seems like it's worked out, though."

"Yeah. I guess." Sonny says, sadly.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I say something wrong?" Will asks, concerned.

"Oh, no. It's just sometimes I think…." Sonny begins.

"Daaaaaddy?" Arianna yells out. "Daaaaaddy?"

Will immediately stands up and races over to his daughter. "I'm right here, baby girl. You are just having one of your nightmares."

Will picks up his trembling daughter and wipes the tears from her eyes. She curls into her father's body and sobs.

"Daddy," she whispers in a trembling voice. "Don't ever leave me. Please, daddy."

"Baby, I'm not going anywhere," Will whispers and places a soft kiss on her cheek.

Will turns around and sees Sonny standing right behind him. "Is everything ok?" Sonny asks.

"Yeah. She will be ok. She gets these nightmares everyone once in a while. I just have to hold her until she calms down. Usually takes a little bit of time."

"Sonny?" Ari lifts her tear-stained face up and looks into Sonny's eyes.

"Yes?"

Ari reaches out her arms to Sonny. Sonny looks at Will, who has a shocked look on his face. Will hands Ari over to Sonny, who takes her willingly.

"You protect me, Sonny?" Ari whispers.

Sonny looks at Will confused, then smiles at Ari. "Of course I will. Knight in shining armor, at your service."


	8. Chapter 8

"Are you finally going to talk to me?"

"Yes, Brian. Let's talk. Please explain to me why you refuse to get along with Gabi?" Will asks, exasperated.

"Because she's a bitch!"

"Whether or not that's true doesn't matter. The sooner you accept she's a part of my life, the better we can all get along."

"I accept that she is part of your life. I just can't stand her."

"Then please explain what it is about her that you just can't stand."

"Will," Brian sighs, looking deeply into his boyfriend's eyes and grabbing his hand. "I hate how she talks to you. How she treats you. You don't deserve that. And you never stand up for yourself against her. So, I do it for you."

"But, I never asked you to stand up for me."

"I love you, babe. And I hate seeing how upset she makes you. I just want to help."

"But how are you helping when all you do is argue with each other? You make this arrangement worse than it needs to be."

"Let's not pretend like Gabi is innocent in all of this. It's not like she tries with me either."

"Brian, that is not the point and you know it. Gabi has to be around for Ari. I have to deal with her to make this as easy on my daughter as possible."

"And you think I make things harder? Is that what you are trying to say?"

"Yes. You make it almost impossible to deal with her. And if you don't figure out how to deal with Gabi, then we will have some decisions to make."

"Wait," Brian whispers, shocked. "Are you saying I either have to get along with Gabi or we are done?"

"No," Will sighs. "Not exactly."

"Will, what are you saying then?"

"My daughter comes first, Brian. No matter what."

"So, she's a priority. I get that. But where does that leave me?" Brian asks, sadly.

"I love you, Brian. You know that. But if I have to pick between you and Ari, I will always pick Ari. So, don't make me choose."

"Honestly, Will. I don't know what you want from me."

"Brian," Will sighs. "You get along with Gabi. The end. And if we have to have this discussion again…."

"Ok. I get it. I need to behave around princess Gabi."

Will glares at Brian and seethes, "This is exactly what I am talking about!"

Will takes a deep breath and continues. "Right now, I can't be around you. We will talk when Gabi comes back and gets Ari. Until then, I don't want you around. Me or Ari."

"But," Brian begins to object.

"No. I am done with this conversation Brian. Grab your things and go stay somewhere else for the next couple of days. Some space is needed right now."

* * *

Brian is recalling his relationship with Will. All the memories, good and bad. Their relationship has been tumultuous. And he knows that his temper and jealousy tends to get in the way. Will is usually pretty calm about it, but lately something has changed in him. He doesn't let Brian's behavior slide as much anymore. Will doesn't laugh off his comments about Gabi, instead he defends her. He can't quite figure out where the change has occurred or why.

_Brian didn't learn about Will's daughter until he was already head over heels for him. Brian had met Will at the gym. He noticed that amazing body of his while Will was running on the treadmill. Brian was on the machine behind him, just watching Will run. Then when Will got off and turned around, Brian saw the most entrancing blue eyes stare back at him. He knew at that moment, that he wanted to get to know this gorgeous guy with the amazing body. He saw Will walk over to the juice bar and decided to follow and introduce himself. _

_"Hey. I'm Brian. How long have you been coming here? I know I would have remembered seeing you around." Brian says as he gives the guy a once over, liking what he sees. _

_Will blushed, like he always does when he's complimented. "I'm Will. I've been coming here for a while. I just don't usually come at this time. I'm usually here later."_

_Brian quickly noticed Will's adorable half grin. The way he didn't make a lot of eye contact. The way he turned red anytime Brian stared at him, consuming him. Brian knew he wanted to get to know this guy._

_"So, are you single?"_

_Will almost chokes on his drink. "Oh. Ummm…yeah. Sort of."_

_Brian motions for Will to follow him to one of the tables and Will complies, although Brian can read uncertainty in Will's eyes. Will's eyes always gave him away. _

_"Not really? Does that mean you are interested in someone? Just broke up?"_

_"Oh. No. No current interests. Just not really looking at the moment."_

_"Living the bachelor life? I understand that."_

_Will nods his head in agreement, refusing to make eye contact with Brian. Brian continues, "But if you are looking to have a little fun, let me give you my number."_

_Brian motions for Will to hand over his phone, which he does begrudgingly. Brian inputs his number in Will's phone, then calls his phone so he has Will's number. _

_"I'm going out tonight. If you aren't doing anything, you should join me."_

_"Oh, I don't know if I can do anything tonight. I kind of already have plans."_

_"Well, let me know when you don't have plans. And we can grab drinks and get to know each other. I really would like to get to know you."_

_Brian gives Will the once over, again, and smiles. Will can feel his face heating up. "Ok." Is all Will can whisper before Brian gets up from the table. _

_As Brian is walking away, he yells out to will, " Don't forget to call me."_

_A couple of days later, Will calls Brian to hang out. He figures what's the harm, this guy is clearly interested. And Will could use some adult entertainment. _

Brian never anticipated falling in love with Will. Or finding out he had a daughter 4 months later. Then breaking up with him because he wasn't ready to be a father. Realizing that he loved Will and that maybe he could learn to love his daughter. But Brian never did get comfortable with Ari. He still sees her as a nuisance, but he tries to pretend he cares about her for Will's sake. Their relationship has gone through a lot, all because of that girl. He kind of blames her for Will pulling away recently. He just wishes she would go away, so he could have Will all to himself. He was tired of sharing his boyfriend. And he was pretty sure he was reaching his breaking point with that little girl.


	9. Chapter 9

"You have to be kidding me right now?"

"Actually, no. I am being completely serious."

"Well, it's not going to happen."

"And why not Sonny?" Neil asks, angrily.

"I am not firing Will because you don't want us working together. It's not going to happen."

"Why are you so adamant about this? Don't my feeling matter at all?"

"What? Are you kidding me right now?"

"Why do you keep asking me that? Of course I am being serious."

"Then please explain what your problem with Will is."

"I don't trust him around you. Don't think I didn't see the looks you guys were giving each other. Sexual energy was emanating off of you two!"

"Oh, here we go again. I need you to stop doing this all the time."

"Doing what?"

"Doing this!" Sonny points between them, emphasizing his point. "This insecurity you have with me cheating on you has to stop!"

"Well, do you blame me?" Neil whispers.

"Actually," Sonny sighs. "I do. I am not the one who cheated, remember?"

"Just because you aren't the one who cheated, doesn't mean that it still won't happen."

"Have I ever gave you a reason to doubt me? Ever?"

"Well, no."

"Then why do you insist on believing I will start now?"

"Have you forgotten how we met?"

"No. Of course not. But you can't blame what happened on me. You are the one who cheated on your boyfriend. Who, by the way, I had known nothing about when we had sex."

"Wow. Thank you for throwing that one in my face!"

"Look, Neil. I have to go into work now. I really don't want to, but we will continue this conversation later."

"Fine."

Sonny grabs his things and walks out the door. Neil feels pretty miffed by his boyfriend. _He couldn't even give me a kiss goodbye, _Neil thinks sadly.

Sonny bringing up how they met still burns Neil a little bit. He never wanted to be that guy. He never planned on cheating on Tyler, but it just kind of happened. Too much alcohol mixed with Sonny made for a bad combination that night. Not that this was the first time he cheated. It was always under the same circumstances. It still surprised him that he and Brian were able to remain friends after they broke up. Although that situation was completely different. They had both cheated on each other. And they always came back to each other when things went sour in their respective relationships. But Sonny didn't need to know all of that.

_Neil was on his sixth beer when Dustin introduced him to Sonny. Sonny has this way of making people feel comfortable around him. And that's what happened to Neil. Neil grabbed Sonny a beer and they decided to go outside to the porch to talk. It was actually Sonny's idea. _

_"Dustin has told me a lot about you."_

_"Oh. I'm afraid to know."_

_Sonny laughed. He has this lyrical laugh that made me smile. "Oh, good things. I promise."_

_And there it was. That calmness that overtook me. I leaned in to give him a kiss, but he leaned back. "Whoa. How many of those have you had?"_

_"A couple," I said sheepishly. "Enough to make me realize that kissing you right now is all I want to do."_

"_Yeah. I think you have had enough. Let's go inside."_

_A couple of drinks later, we couldn't keep our hands off of each other. Next thing I remember is waking up next to him and feeling like shit. Then reality hit me. Tyler was going to be home soon. Sonny had to leave before Tyler saw us together. Naked. In his bed. But then Tyler walks in and all hell breaks loose. Tyler is yelling at me, which wakes up Sonny. He has the most adorable "deer caught in headlights" look. He scrambled to get out of there. I'm actually surprised he even talked to me after that. But Sonny is such a forgiving guy. I never expected that drunken mistake to turn into something more. But it did. Tyler broke up with me after Sonny left that day and kicked me out. I had nowhere to go, but I remember someone mentioning he owns Common Ground. I went there and talked to him. Explained everything. He offered his couch to me to crash until I figured things out. He barely knew me and he was being a better friend than any of my other friends were being. I crashed at his place for a week until I was able to find a place to go. By then, we were inseparable. _

Neil is scared he will lose Sonny. He knows that Sonny is the best thing that has ever happened to him. He is everything that Neil is not. Sonny can calm him down when no one else can, make him see things clearly. He is so loving and patient and understanding. Neil doesn't know what he would do without Sonny, nor did he want to figure it out. But he just had this nagging feeling that Will was someone he needed to keep an eye on. He knew that Will and Brian were together, but Brian has told Neil that something has changed with Will. That their relationship is changing. He feels like he is losing Will. Neil was not going to let the same thing happen to his relationship with Sonny. He was not going to ruin another amazing relationship. He can't let his insecurities and his lack of self-restraint ruin what they have. He has done it too many times. And Sonny was too amazing to let slip through his fingers.

Neil picks up his phone and makes a call. "Hey, it's me. We need to talk."


	10. Chapter 10

"Son-nnnny?"

"Ready or not, here I come."

Arianna is hiding behind Sonny's desk chair, giggling, as Sonny turns around once he finishes counting.

"Now where could she be?" Sonny asks the empty room.

Arianna's giggles become louder as Sonny walks closer to his desk. "I do believe I hear the sound of some little mice coming from my desk."

Sonny walks closer to his desk and pretends to not see Arianna. "Where are you, Miss Arianna?"

Arianna pops up from behind the chair and yells, "Right here, silly!"

Sonny walks over to where Arianna is standing and exclaims, "There you are! I was looking all over for you."

Arianna jumps up into Sonny's arms and he catches her. She giggles as he swings her around. He stops when he hears a knock on the door. "Who do you think that is?"

"Daaaaaaaaddy!" Arianna exclaims as Sonny releases her from his arms.

"Hey, baby girl. You sound like you are having fun with Sonny." Will says as he scoops up his daughter.

"I love Sonny, Daddy!"

"Oh, you do? Do I have some stiff competition for your affections?" Will asks, in mock horror.

Arianna giggles and says, "No, Daddy!"

"Are you about ready to go home?"

Arianna pouts and says, "No! Unless Sonny can come with us."

Arianna and Will both look at Sonny, who shrugs. "Actually, I do get off soon. Chad is supposed to close up tonight. But I don't know if Neil will be so understanding."

"Pweeeease, Sonny! Come play with us!"

"We were going to head to the park, if you want to join us. I know Arianna wants you to come, but if you have plans, she will understand. Right, sweetie?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Arianna pouts as she wiggles out of her father's arms. Arianna then races over to Sonny and begins tugging at his pant leg. "Pleeeeease come!"

"You know that's not fair!" Sonny says in mock indignation. "How could anyone possibly say no to that face?"

Will laughs and says, "It's a daily struggle."

* * *

Arianna lets out a blood curdling scream. Will and Sonny race over to her from their place on the park bench.

"Arianna, sweetie," Will yells out in fear. "What's wrong?"

Will and Sonny see Arianna lying on the ground. She is screaming and holding her head, which they see has blood oozing out. Will and Sonny both kneel down to figure out where the blood is coming from exactly.

"Baby, let me look at it," Will whispers to his daughter.

Arianna continues to scream as tears fall down her face. "Daaaaddy. It huuuurts. Maaaake it stoooooop."

Sonny pulls out his phone and calls 911, as Will tries to calm down his daughter. Will places his hand over his daughters, trying to get her to move it. She finally moves her hand and Will sees this large gash right above her eyebrow, which is still actively bleeding. He lifts her up and pulls her against his body, rocking her as he applies pressure over her wound.

A couple of minutes later, the ambulance shows up. Arianna is still sobbing with her head resting against her father's chest. Sonny walks the EMTs over to where Will and Arianna are on the ground. They look at the cut, which has mostly stopped bleeding.

"I'm sorry," Sonny whispers to Will. "I didn't know what else to do. I was so scared when I saw the blood and she was screaming."

"No, thanks," Will replies. "I think she is ok now. Does she need to go to the hospital?"

"It would probably be best. Just to check out the cut and possibly do a xray to make sure there is nothing else going on."

"Ari, did you hear that?" Will whispers to his daughter. "We are going to go to the hospital, ok?"

"Don't leave me, Daddy," Arianna sniffles.

"I can ride along with her, right?" Will asks the paramedics.

"Yeah. Of course."

"I will take my car and meet you guys there, if that is ok," Sonny asks Will.

"Yeah. I think Arianna would like that. Wouldn't you, sweetie?"

Arianna nods her head. Will smiles up at Sonny and says, "Thanks."

Sonny grabs Arianna from Will's arms, so he can stand up. Arianna curls into Sonny and whispers, "You remembered."

Sonny and Will both look at her with confusion and ask in unison, "Remember what?"

"Daddy," Arianna whispers. "Sonny promised to be my knight in shining armor. He remembered."


	11. Chapter 11

"You were such a brave girl today!" Sonny exclaims.

"Thank you!" Arianna smiles proudly. "I was just trying to be like my daddy. He's the bravest person I know."

"Well, thank you, baby girl," Will chimes in, happily. "You were mighty brave today. How many stitches did you get?"

"Dr. Cam said 6!"

"I bet they hurt," Sonny said.

"Yup. I tried to be brave for daddy."

"You didn't have to be brave for me, sweetie." Will bends down and picks up his daughter off the hospital bed. "How about we reward you for doing so well today?"

"ICEEEE CREEEEEEEM!" She shouts.

"If that is what you would like," Will smiles at his daughter. "Then your wish is my command."

Arianna giggles at her father and says,"Chocolate is my favorite! What's your favorite, Sonny?"

"I'm more of a vanilla guy," Sonny winks at Arianna, who begins to giggle.

"Daddy likes Chocolate, just like me!" Arianna states proudly. "You coming Sonny?"

Sonny looks to Will, who smiles and nods his head. "Please come along. Ari would love it." Then Will whispers, "And so would I."

"Now how can I say no to an invitation like that?" Sonny says to Arianna, then looks Will in the eyes and smiles. "So is it time to break out of here?"

* * *

"I can't believe what time it is!" Will announces as he sees the employees of the ice cream shop cleaning up. He looks down at his watch and notices that it is now 9 pm. "Sonny, I am so sorry! I can't believe we have been here for 4 hours!"

"Neil is going to kill me!" Sonny exclaims.

"Oh, I'm sorry. You can just tell him it's all my fault, because it kind of is." Will sighs.

"No, Will. It's not your fault. I just let time get away from me. Plus I didn't want to wake her." Sonny nods his head to Arianna, who is asleep in his arms.

"Oh, let me take her. She didn't last very long after that ice cream."

"No, it's fine. I will put her in the car for you. You ready?"

"Yeah."

Sonny gently gets up so not to disturb the little girl who has fallen asleep on his shoulder. Will picks up their trash and throws it all away, as Sonny heads to the door with Arianna. She wraps her legs around Sonny's waist and wraps her arms around his neck. _I could get used to this, _Sonny thinks and smiles.

"By the way, why is Neil going to kill you?" Will asks.

"Oh, we were supposed to have dinner tonight. I told him I would be there around 7. This was the only night we both had off in a long time."

"And we ruined it. I really am very sorry."

"Hey. It's not your fault. I had a great day with you guys today. More fun than I have had in a long time, honestly," Sonny whispers as he looks Will in the eyes and smiles.

"Well, I am happy to hear that," Will beams at Sonny. "We had fun, too. But I don't want Neil to be mad at you on my account. Did he ever call to see where you were?"

"No. I don't think so." Sonny begins searching his pockets for his phone while trying not to disturb Arianna. "Great. I don't even have my phone on me. Did I leave it in your car?"

They reach the car and Sonny begins to put Arianna in her car seat, while Will begins searching for Sonny's phone.

"Oh, here it is!" Will exclaims. "You must have dropped it before we got out. It was on the floor where you were sitting."

"Sooonny," Arianna says, groggy.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Are you leaving?" She asks, sadly.

"Yeah. I need to go home," Sonny whispers.

"You're not gonna tuck me in?" Arianna asks, as her lip begins to quiver.

"Ari, Sonny has spent the day with you. He needs to go home. I can tuck you in, like I always do."

"But I want Sonny to," Arianna begins to cry.

"I guess I could do that," Sonny smiles. "I'm already late. What's a few more minutes?"

"You really don't have to," Will whispers. "She will understand."

"Oh, do you not want me to do," Sonny says, embarrassed. "I just crossed a line, didn't I? I'm really sorry, Will. I didn't realize…."

"Woah," Will says, shocked and places his hands on Sonny's shoulders. Will looks into Sonny's eyes and says, "That's not it at all. I would love for you to come home with me. I just don't want you to feel like you have to."

Will begins to turn red when he realizes what he just said. "What I, uh, meant was. Uh…"

Sonny begins to laugh. "I know what you meant. And I really don't mind doing it. I kind of adore that little girl."

Will looks down at the ground, smiles and whispers, "Well, she kind of adores you, too."

Will looks up to see Sonny staring intently at him. "Well, let's go. I need to take you by the coffeehouse to pick up your car, don't I?"

"Oh, yeah. I completely forgot about my car."

Will smiles at Sonny as they both get in the car.

Will stops his car next to Sonny's at Common Grounds, where the parking lot has pretty much emptied out.

"If you want to follow me, I can show you where we live."

Sonny nods his head and steps out of the car. He looks over his shoulder and notices Will staring intently at him as he walks away. This sends a chill down his spine and he smiles as he walks to his car.

A few minutes later, they arrive at Will's apartment. Will scans the parking lot to check for Brian's car, which is nowhere to be seen. Will gets Arianna out of her car seat and feels someone's hand on his back. Will jumps, turns around and sees Sonny smiling at him, which makes Will smile.

"Do you want me to take her?" Sonny asks, teasingly. "I am her favorite, if you haven't already noticed."

Will smiles and says, "I have noticed. You may have taken my place."

"Oh, I could never do that," Sonny whispers, looking into Will's eyes.

Once they arrive at the front door, Will turns to Sonny. "Do you mind taking her for a minute? I need to find my keys."

Sonny reaches out as Will passes his daughter to Sonny. Arianna sighs and curls into Sonny's body. Will unlocks and opens the door. He sets his keys down in the bowl next to the door. He sets down Arianna's stuff and nods for Sonny to follow him to her room. Sonny sets Arianna down on the bed as Will begins to undress her.

"Sonny," Will whispers. "Would you mind going into her dresser? The second drawer has her pajamas in there. Just grab whatever."

"Snoopy," Arianna whispers.

"Nevermind. Make that Snoopy." Will laughs. "She loves her Snoopy pajamas. That's why there are so many in there."

Sonny grabs the pajamas and bring them over to Will. Will sits Arianna up in bed and pulls the nightgown over her head, as Sonny watches. Then Will picks up his daughter and asks Sonny, "Would you mind pulling back the covers for me?"

Sonny smiles at Will holding his daughter. "Of course."

Sonny pulls back the covers. Then Will places his daughter in bed. Sonny then places the covers on Arianna.

"Sonny?" Arianna asks.

"Yes?"

"Will you stay here tonight?"

"Why do you want me to stay?" Sonny asks, confused. Then looks at Will who has the same confused look on his face.

"For daddy," she whispers.

"What about me, sweetie?"

"You're happier when Sonny is around. I want you happy."

Will turns bright red at his daughters words. "Baby girl, I think you are just tired. How about you go back to sleep?"

"Kisses," she says.

"Well, of course!" Will exclaims. He kisses her on the forehead and says, "Sweet dreams, baby girl. And don't let the bed bugs bite."

This always makes Arianna giggle. Both boys walk to the door and Will turns off the light.

"Sonny?" Arianna asks.

"Yes?"

"Where are my bedtime kisses?"

Sonny looks at Will, who is smiling. Will nods his head and says, "You heard the girl. She wants her bedtime kisses."


	12. Chapter 12

"WHAT THE HELL?"

Will is startled awake by Brian's voice.

"Brian, what are you doing here?"

"WHAT AM I DOING HERE? WHAT IS HE DOING HERE?" Brian points to the place next to Will.

Will turns his head and sees Sonny asleep next to him on the couch. Will's eyes widen and he says quickly, "This is not what it looks like, Brian?"

"REALLY, WILL? PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME WHY YOUR BOSS IS ASLEEP NEXT TO YOU ON THE COUCH AT 1 AM?"

"Brian, stop yelling. You are going to wake up Ari," Will whispers through clenched teeth.

Will hears rustling next to him and looks over to see Sonny waking up. "What's going on?"

"That's exactly what I would like to know!" Brian exclaims.

"What? Where am i?" Sonny asks, groggy.

"Brian, nothing is going on!" Will exclaims, exasperated.

Sonny is beginning to process everything and looks down at his watch. "Shit."

"Will. What the hell is going on?" Brian cries out.

"I have to go," Sonny says as he stands up. "I can't believe I fell asleep. Neil is going to kill me. Tell Ari bye and I will see you at work later." Sonny quickly dashes out of the apartment.

"Shit," Will says under his breath.

Brian is moving closer to Will with fire in his eyes. "I need to know what I just walked in on. Now."

"Brian, Sonny and I fell asleep. That is all."

"Why is your boss at your apartment?"

Will sighs and says, "He was with me today at the hospital."

"Hospital? Why were you at the hospital?" Brian asks, concerned.

"Ari fell. She had to get stitches. Sonny was with me when she fell."

"Is she ok? Where did this happen?"

"At the park."

"Why was Sonny with you guys at the park?"

"Ari really likes him. She asked him to come with us, he agreed."

"Really? He decided to spend his anniversary with you instead of with his boyfriend?"

"Wait. What are you talking about?"

"Neil called me today. Said Sonny stood him up. He had made plans for their anniversary."

"Oh. I had no clue," Will says, quietly.

"Wait. Why did Neil call you?" Will asks with angry intonations.

Brian looks away from Will, but not before Will notices a flash of guilt cross his eyes. "Oh…uh. It was nothing really."

"Brian. Why did Neil call you today? Why would he call you to talk about Sonny?"

"That really doesn't matter!" Brian exclaims.

"You have got to be kidding me! Of course it matters."

"Daaaaaddy," Will hears Arianna whimper.

"We are not done here," Will seethes.

"Yeah. We are." Brian whispers as he turns towards the door. "Go take care of your daughter. You can deal with us later. You always do."

"Brian, don't do this now," Will sighs.

"Soooony?" Arianna whimpers out.

"Oh, that's just wonderful," Brian yells as he slams the door.

"Great. Just great," Will sighs.

Will walks into his daughter's room and sees her crying. "Daddy's here, baby."

"It huuuurts, daaaaaddy."

"What does?"

"My head. It really hurts," Arianna whimpers.

"Oh, sweetie," Will sighs. He kneels down and picks her. "How about you sleep with daddy tonight?"

Arianna smiles through her tears, "Yes, please."

Will walks to his room with Arianna in his arms, crying. He lays her down on Brian's side of the bed. He notices all the bruising on her face from the fall. "I'm going to grab some ice for your head, sweetie. And some of your Tylenol."

Arianna nods her head as Will walks off to grab those items. _Tonight is just turning out to be wonderful_, Will thinks. He grabs a small baggie and places ice into it. Then grabs a wash cloth to wrap around the ice. He then heads to the medicine cabinet to grab Arianna's children's liquid Tylenol. Then he heads back into his room, where he can still hear his daughter whimpering. He sits her up in bed and gives her the usual dose of Tylenol. She then lays back down and he places ice on her head.

"Daddy?" Arianna whispers.

"Yes, sweetie," Will replies, as he rakes his hand through her hair.

"Will you sing to me?"

"Of course, baby. What would like me to sing?"

"I don't care, daddy."

Will gets up to turn the lights off and begins to sing to Arianna one of her favorite lullabies. She falls asleep before he even gets through the first verse.

"I love you, baby girl," Will whispers.

He takes the ice off of her face and gives her a gentle kiss. He lays down next to her, pulling his daughter into his body. He begins to slowly rub her back as the days events play in his mind. Will is dreading dealing with the aftermath of what all happened tonight. Talking to Brian. Apologizing to Sonny. Explaining to Gabi what happened with Ari. He knows his daughter is going to feel horrible in the morning and right now, that is all he cares about. Brian and his issues are going to have to wait for another day. But he does need to talk with Sonny first thing in the morning.


	13. Chapter 13

"Hey. Can we talk?" Will asks, nervously.

"Uh. Sure. What's up?" Sonny replies.

"I wanted to talk to you about last night. Do you mind if we go somewhere private?"

"Uh. Yeah. Chad's in the office, though."

"Oh."

"I'm about to leave. Would you mind if we talked at my place?"

"Oh," Will whispers, his cheeks quickly turning crimson. "That's fine."

"Let me just tell Chad I'm heading out and then we can leave," Sonny replies, choosing to ignore Will's reaction to going to his apartment.

"Ok. I will wait outside for you."

Sonny turns around to head into the office he shares with Chad as Will walks outside and sits down on the bench to wait for Sonny.

_Pull yourself together, Horton, _Will thinks. _You've been alone with Sonny before. You were alone with him last night. Just ignore the dizziness you feel in his presence. You have a boyfriend that you love and so does he. He is just your boss, possibly your friend. Nothing more. Now man up!_

"Hey," Sonny says, as he knocks on the office door. "I'm heading home."

"Already?" Chad looks up from the computer, quizzically. "You weren't supposed to leave for another hour?"

"Yeah, I know," Sonny sighs. "But something came up that I have to deal with. Do you mind?"

"It's no problem, man," Chad says, standing up from behind the desk. He walks over to Sonny and puts his hand on his shoulder, "Anything I can help with?"

"No. But thanks for offering. I'll talk to you later."

Sonny turns around and leaves the office. He begins to walk out to meet Will and begins to think. _Ok. What was with that reaction from Will? Does he not want to be alone with me? Did I make him uncomfortable last night when I fell asleep at his place? Smooth, Kiriakis. Smooth._

"Hey? You ready to go?" Sonny asks as he walks outside.

Will looks up startled. "Oh. Uh, yeah. Lets go."

"Is something wrong, Will? Do you want to go talk somewhere else?" Sonny asks, slightly annoyed at himself.

"Oh, no," Will whispers. "Your place is great."

Will smiles awkwardly, hoping that he is hiding the fact that his heart feels like it is about to beat out of his chest at being alone with Sonny again. Neither one of them speaks the few blocks it takes to get to Sonny's apartment.

They are standing in front of the apartment complex, walk inside and up three flights of stairs. Then Sonny pulls out his keys and opens the door.

"This is your apartment?"

"Yeah. My humble abode."

"It's really nice. I like it."

"Thanks. By the way, where is Arianna?"

"Oh. She's with my grandma. I promised she could have Ari today."

"Oh." Sonny says, sadly. "Is she feeling better?"

"Yeah. She woke up screaming last night. So, I let her sleep with me."

Sonny smiles to himself, "I'm sure she loved that."

"Yeah," Will smiles. "She loves sleeping with me. What can I say, I'm a great cuddler."

Sonny can feel heat spread across his face and whispers, "I bet."

Sonny clears his throat in an attempt to compose himself as images of Will in bed float through his mind. "So do you want something to drink?"

"No. I'm fine."

They stare at each other awkwardly for a couple of seconds in silence. "So?" Sonny asks.

"Oh. Yes. I wanted to talk to you about last night."

"Ok. What about it?"

"Well, first, I wanted to apologize for the way Brian acted."

"Oh. That. It's okay."

"He also told me last night was some anniversary of yours and Neil's?"

"Yeah. It was all Neil's idea. 6 months since we met." Sonny is immediately thrown off by the fact that Brian knew about that. Sonny decides he needs to talk to Neil about that.

"Oh. I'm so sorry. We ruined your plans."

"No!" Sonny exclaims. "I wanted to be there with you. And Arianna."

"Oh?" Will asks, smiling. "Ari does have that effect on people."

"And so do you," Sonny whispers.

Will can feel his heart start to race and knots in his stomach start to tighten. "I'm sorry your plans were ruined."

"It's ok. Really. I should apologize for falling asleep on the couch. I kind of overstayed my welcome, didn't I?"

"No." Will says, quickly. "I liked having you there. Ari likes having you around. Actually she called out for you last night." Will immediately begins to turn red, regretting saying that last part.

"Oh, really?" Sonny smiles his megawatt smile. Will's knees get weak anytime he sees that smile.

"Yeah. For some reason she seems to like you," Will teases.

"I seem to have that effect on women," Sonny replies, deadpan.

Will busts out laughing and replies, "Well, you must disappoint the lot of them, then?"

"Yeah," Sonny smiles. "Something like that."

Will and Sonny lock eyes and smile. Sonny licks his lips and is about to say something when he hears voices outside his door. Will looks at Sonny and grabs his arm.

"Don't worry. He won't be home."


	14. Chapter 14

Sonny and Will are standing still waiting for the door to open. Will has a death grip on Sonny's arm. Sonny can see the color dissipate from Will's face and can feel his fingers shaking as they dig into Sonny's skin. Sonny can hear Will's shallow and rapid breathing. He decides to grab Will by the waist and pull him into his body before he collapses to the ground. Will grabs onto Sonny's shoulder to steady himself.

"Are you okay?" Sonny whispers, concerned.

All Will can do is shake his head no, as his eyes are brimming with tears. Then Sonny hears Will whisper to himself, "Not again. This can't be happening again."

The door swings open and the man walking through has a look of surprise when he sees Will and Sonny. He then asks, "What are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here? What are you doing here?" Sonny replies, angrily.

"I thought you were at work."

"Obviously. So what are you doing here when you thought I was at work?"

"I think the better question is, what are you doing here with him?" Neil gestures towards Will, who looks down at the ground.

"Don't worry why Will is here, Neil," Sonny replies, sternly. "How about you tell me why you brought him here?"

"Brian?" Neil asks, innocently.

"Yes. Why did you bring Brian to my apartment when you thought I was at work? You do realize how this looks, right?"

"Really, Sonny?"

"Yes, Neil. Do I need to remind you how all of your relationships end? Your current boyfriend walking in on you and your next boyfriend."

"Uh, Neil. He is right about that," Brian interjects.

"Really, Brian? You're going to take Sonny's side here?"

"Weeeell," Brian begins. "Your history speaks for itself. And you know I would never side with _him_."

Brian looks over at Sonny and scowls.

"Can we please stop this?" Will begs quietly, still standing next to Sonny.

"Babe, I'm sorry," Brian says as he walks over to Will, glaring at Sonny.

Will shakes his head no and says, "Don't, Brian."

"What's wrong?"

"Why were you coming here with Neil. Alone." Will whispers, his voice shaking.

"Yes. I would like an answer to that. And I want the truth," Sonny adds, eyeing Neil.

"It's nothing, really," Neil says.

"Why don't you let me be the judge of that?" Sonny asks.

"There's nothing to judge. Nothing to tell," Brian claims, nonchalantly.

"How can you really say that?" Will asks, hurt. "There is clearly something going on between you two that you refuse to tell us."

"Wow. Isn't that the pot calling the kettle black!" Neil exclaims.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Sonny asks with accusation.

"You can't be serious?" Brian asks. "Don't act like you don't have a thing for my boyfriend."

"Brian, stop," Will whispers. "Stop with your unfounded jealousy. Sonny is my boss and friend. That is all."

Neil laughs out and says, "I'm sure."

"This is getting us nowhere," Sonny yells out. "Can you please just be mature for once, Neil? Stop starting fights with people and answer the damn question. Why did you bring Brian here?"

"I told you it was nothing!" Neil exclaims, annoyed. "We came here to talk, privately."

"What could you possibly need to talk about privately?" Sonny asks.

"We were talking about you two," Neil says, pointing at Will and Sonny. "Just look at how close you two are standing right now. Can you honestly tell me there is absolutely nothing going on?"

Will and Sonny look at each other, realizing just how close they are standing. Will still has his hand on Sonny's shoulder, while Sonny has his hand on Will's back. They both clear their throats and take a step away from each other. Their hands linger on each other momentarily, neither really wanting to let the other one go. Then missing the feeling of the others hand on their bodies.

"There is absolutely nothing going on between us," Sonny says, regretfully. "I have just been helping out with his daughter at work. He is only an employee. Nothing more."

Will looks over at Sonny, with hurt clearly showing in his eyes. Will whispers, "Yeah. Nothing more."

Sonny looks over at Will and his heart drops. "Will, I didn't mean it like that."

"No. It's okay. You're right."

"Babe? Do you want to go?" Brian asks.

"Brian, just stop!" Will exclaims angrily. "Stop pretending like you care."

"But, Will…" Brian trails off.

"I need to go pick up Ari," Will says, dejectedly. "And Sonny, don't worry. I will try to not bring her around anymore. I don't want you to feel responsible for her."

"Will…" Sonny sighs, trying to swallow the lump that has formed in his throat. "That's not what I meant."

Will shakes his head and walks toward the door. "I'll see you at work tomorrow, Sonny. Bye."

Will silently closes the door behind him as his eyes well up with tears. _Well, if I wasn't sure how Sonny felt about me before, I sure do now, _Will thinks. Will is willingly himself to not give in to the hurt that is ripping through his body.

Sonny sits down on the edge of his bed and puts his head in his hands. "Was all of that really necessary, Neil?"

"What did I say?" Neil asks.

"Don't pull this shit, Neil. You know exactly what you did," Sonny exclaims. "Will has done absolutely nothing to you. He didn't deserve to be treated like that. Why did you do that?"

Neil smiles at Sonny and replies,"He needs to know to step away from my man."

Neil directs his attention at Brian, who is still standing there. "And maybe if someone knew how to please their boyfriend, he wouldn't be going after mine!"

Brian snaps at Neil,"Really? After everything we've been through? Why am I even friends with you?"

Brian turns around and storms out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him.

"Everything you've been through?" Sonny asks.

Neil's face turns red and he refuses to make eye contact with Sonny. "Uhhhhmm…."

"That's what I thought," Sonny whispers.

"Babe…."

"You have two choices right now. You either need to be gone when I get back or be ready to start providing answers to all my questions. Or else we are done, Neil. And I am serious this time."

"Sonny?" Neil whines.

"No. I am going to go find Will and clear the air. And I will deal with you when I get back."

"Of course. Off to rescue your boy toy. You clearly care about him more than me."

"Actually, right now, I do."

Sonny grabs his keys and his coat, then slams the door behind him. _Please, Will. I need to find you. _


	15. Chapter 15

Will silently closes the door behind him and lets out a shaky breath. He begins the decent to his car.

"Pull yourself together, Horton," he whispers to himself.

But Will can't stop the tears from sliding down his cheek and that crushing feeling that just keeps gnawing at his chest.

"You are nothing but an employee to him. Just accept it."

Will had begun to trust Sonny. Not only with himself, but also with his daughter. He can't even trust Ari with Brian. So letting Sonny watch Ari was huge for him. Ari was his life and he had entrusted that with Sonny. Only to find out that trust was misplaced. Will felt like such a fool for believing in Sonny and their friendship.

"I promised myself I wouldn't do this," Will begins yelling at himself as he gets in his car. "I promised I wouldn't bring people in and out of her life and what do I do? I let Sonny in. Ari is going to be crushed. How could I do this to her?"

Will places his hands on the steering wheel and then sets his head down. He finally lets the pain overcome him. The crushing hurt that he hasn't felt in so long. He sits in his car feeling like the biggest idiot for letting himself think that Sonny actually cared about him and his daughter. _I bet they are up there laughing at me right now_, Will thinks.

Will lifts his head and takes a couple of shaky breaths. He looks in the mirror to see his face damp with tears and his eyes bloodshot. He needs to pull himself together and go get his daughter. No time for self-pity, because his daughter depends on him. And at least he still has Brian. Not like that feels like much of a consolation prize anymore.

Will puts the car in drive and heads to his grandmother's house, knowing that the only thing that can make his heart hurt a little less in his amazing daughter. _At least I have her. I will always have her._

* * *

Sonny grabs his coat and keys on his way out of the apartment.

"I can't believe you are seriously going after him!" Neil yells out.

Sonny turns around and glares at his boyfriend. "Well, someone has to do damage control. And you clearly don't give a damn about anyone but yourself."

"I care about you," Neil whispers.

"Clearly, you don't. Or else you wouldn't have spoken to Will like that."

"Why do you care so much about him? Do you even care that you are ruining our relationship because of this infatuation you have with him?" Neil yells, angrily.

"Ruining? Infatuation? Seriously?" Sonny asks, innocuously. "You are single-handedly killing this relationship. And if today is any indication to who you truly are, I don't know if I want you in my life anymore."

Sonny slams the door closed, as Neil looks on in shock. Sonny runs to his car, not quite sure where to even begin looking for Will. It's not like he knows who his grandma is or where she lives or which one he was even referring to. He knows they've been mentioned before, but he doesn't know much more about them. Sonny can feel his heart racing and he feels like his stomach is about to drop out of his body. He can't recall the last time he has ever felt this horrible. This guilty.

This is not exactly how Sonny foresaw this day going. Things didn't seem like they could get much worse.

* * *

Will knocks on his grandmother's door.

"Coming," she shouts from the other side.

The door swings open and she smiles at the sight of her grandson. "Well, hello, my precious boy." And she pulls him into a hug. "You weren't gone very long. I've barely had any bonding time with my adorable granddaughter."

Will attempts to smile and nods his head. "Sorry."

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Marlena asks him.

"It's nothing," Will whispers, as he looks to the ground.

Marlena pulls him in for another hug and whispers, "That's clearly not the case. Do you want to talk about it?"

Will can feel everything coming to the surface again and lets out a choked sob. "Where's Ari?"

"I just put her down for a nap. We just finished up lunch."

"Ok," Will says and nods.

Marlena releases Will and they walk into her loft.

"Are you hungry? Do you want something to drink?"

Will shakes his head and sits down on the couch. Marlena sits down next to him and places her hand on his knee. "So, tell me. What is it that has you upset?"

"I really shouldn't be upset about this, honestly."

"Well, what makes you think that?"

"It's just…" Will trails off. "I don't know."

"How about you start from the beginning?"

"Ok," Will whispers. "You know Sonny?"

"Your boss?" Marlena asks, surprised.

"Yeah. Well, he's really been helping me out since Gabi left town. He has voluntarily watched Ari so I can work. She has really bonded with him. And I thought maybe we were getting closer. You know, friends. But he proved today how off base I really was."

"You don't think your friends? Or is there something more you're not saying?"

Will can feel his face flush and he looks up at his grandma, who smiles at him. "I don't know. I just really have liked spending time with him. And I thought he liked spending time with me and Ari."

"And where does Brian fit into all of this?"

"I don't know. I can feel us drifting more apart, but it's not like that's anything new. Things were strained before I met Sonny."

"So, you're questioning your relationship with Brian?"

"Yeah. I guess so. Plus he has a weird relationship with Sonny's boyfriend, there is some kind of history there that he won't tell me."

"Sonny has a boyfriend?"

"Yeah. And apparently he and Brian have known each other for years. They both aren't happy with my and Sonny's friendship."

"Why do you think that is?"

"They claim something is going on between us, but Grandma, nothing has ever happened between us."

"Do you want something to happen with Sonny?"

Will looks at his grandmother with pursed lips, then sighs.

"Daaaaaaaaaaaddy!" Ari yells as she comes bounding down the stairs.

Will gives a quick look to his grandma, indicating they are done with this conversation. She smiles sadly and nods her head. Will turns his attention to his daughter, who is gleefully coming down the stairs. He has a huge smile plastered on his face. This was exactly what he needed to feel better. Will walks over to the staircase to greet his daughter, who jumps into his arms.

"I was told you just laid down?" Will asks with a smile.

"I wasn't sleeeeping," she replies.

"But you were supposed to be?"

Arianna looks into her father's eyes and says,"I heard you. I wanted to see you. I sorry."

"Baby girl, don't be sorry," Will whispers and kisses her on the head.

"I missed you," she tells him sweetly, as she nuzzled herself into his body.

"I was only gone for a couple of hours, sweetie."

"I know. I miss you when you gone."

"Right back at ya, babe."

Will winks at his daughter and she goes into a fit of giggles. Marlena watches their interaction and smiles. She always knew he would make an amazing father, but never in her wildest dreams did she think he would be this amazing. _He was meant to be a father, _she thinks.

"I bet you miss your Mommy, too?" Will asks.

Arianna nods her head, then rests it on her father's shoulder. "Yeah."

"Well, I talked to her this morning. She should be back in a couple of days."

"Oh," Ari says, sadly.

"What's wrong, baby girl?"

"Does that mean I have to stay with Mommy again?" She asks, tearfully.

"Yeah," Will replies, sadly.

"Why can't I live with you, Daddy?"

Will places his daughter on the floor and kneels in front of her. "Baby girl, you know I would love for you stay with me, right?"

Arianna looks down at the ground and nods her head.

"Hey, look at me."

Will places his finger under his daughter's chin and lifts her face up, so she is looking him in the eyes. He can see that his daughter is on the verge of tears.

"But you have to live with Mommy. As much as I want you to live with me, and you know how much I want you to live with me, right?"

Arianna nods her head and whispers,"Yeah."

Will grabs his daughter and pulls her into a hug. "You know Daddy loves you so much, right? And that I would do anything to be with you all the time, right?"

Arianna nods her head, as she begins to cry. "I just wanna stay with you forever, Daddy."

"I know, sweetie. I know."

Will picks his daughter back up and she curls into his body. She is crying into his neck, which is breaking his heart.

"Thanks so much Grandma for watching her."

"It was my pleasure, sweetie," Marlena whispers with a smile.

"Can you tell Grandma Marlena goodbye?" Will asks his daughter.

She nods her head yes, removes her head from her dad's neck, and wipes her face with the back of her hand. Arianna then reaches out for her grandma. Marlena happily accepts Arianna into her arms.

"Bye, Nana," Ari whispers. "Thank you for watching me. I love you."

"Well, you are very welcome, my sweet Ari," Marlena coos. "And I love you so much!"

Arianna kisses her grandmother on the cheek as Marlena squeezes her tightly. Then she hands her back to her father.

"Now you be a good girl for Daddy, okay?" Marlena tells Ari.

Arianna nods her head yes and then snuggled into her father again. Will smiles down at his daughter and rubs her back.

"Thank you so much, Grandma," Will whispers. "I owe you for this."

Marlena smiles and says, "The only thing you owe me is more time with this adorable little girl."

Will smiles and nods his head yes. "And I will think about what we talked about."

Marlena's face turns serious and says, "You come talk to me if you need anything."

"I always do," Will replies. "Thank you and I love you."

"I love you, too, sweet boy," she says as she places a kiss on Will's cheek and then closes the door.

Will is holding Arianna as he walks to the car. "Are you feeling any better?"

Arianna nods her head and says, "Yeah."

"Okay. We are gonna go home and try this nap thing again."

"Will Sonny be there?"

Will feels like the wind just got knocked out of him. He wasn't expecting that question from his daughter. And the waves of hurt hits him again. Will takes a couple of deep breaths to compose himself enough to talk to his daughter.

"No," Will says sadly. "You won't be seeing Sonny today. He may not be around much anymore."

"Why, Daddy?" Arianna asks, sadly.

"He's busy, sweetie," Will says, as he puts Arianna in her car seat.

"Did I do something wrong, Daddy? Is Sonny mad at me?" She asks, tearfully.

"Baby girl, you did nothing wrong." Will says as he kisses her on the forehead and gets into the car.

This is exactly what Will was afraid of. He had tried so hard to make sure his daughter didn't get hurt by other people in his life. It was one of the things that Will wanted to protect her from, since he was never protected from that growing up. And he knew the kind of damage it caused when people were coming in and out of your life. Will looks in the rearview mirror at his daughter as he drives home, wishing there was something he could do to take it all back. To have Sonny not be a part of his daughter's life, because it was so hard for him to see Arianna so sad. Her blue eyes filling with tears and her lip quivering.

"Is he mad at you, Daddy?"

Will sighs. Not sure how to explain the situation to his daughter. "I don't think so, sweetie."

"Then why don't he like us anymore?"

Will wanted to say _because he never cared about us_. But he didn't want Arianna to be exposed to the cruelty of life at such a young age. She has had to endure so much in her 3 years, that it just didn't seem fair.

"I don't know, sweetie," Will replies sadly.

Will looks back at his daughter, who is sniffling. He can see in her eyes how sad she is about Sonny. She has never attached to anybody like this before, not that Will ever really let anyone get close enough to hurt her. The sight breaks his heart and Will feels at a loss for what to do.

"How about when we get back we have some snuggle time?"

Arianna smiles at her father and says, "Please!"

Her smile makes everything better for Will. Will turns on the radio so she can listen to her favorite sing alongs, which always puts her in a better mood. Arianna had fallen asleep by the time Will had arrived at his apartment. He gingerly lifts her out of the car seat and she curls into his body. She tightens her grip around Will's neck as they walk towards the apartment. Will is rubbing his daughter's back as she sleeps peacefully in his arms. He places a soft kiss on her head as they ascend up the steps. Will is searching for his keys as he feels his daughter begin to move and wake up.

"Daddy?" Arianna asks, quietly.

"We are almost there, sweetie. Then we can snuggle in Daddy's bed, okay?"

Arianna smiles into Will's neck and says quietly, "Yay."

Will finally reaches their floor when he sees something that surprises him.

"What are you doing here?" Will asks with a mixture of shock and anger.


	16. Chapter 16

Sonny slams the door behind him, determined to find Will. To clear the air between them. All Sonny can think about is that look in Will's eyes when he said there was nothing between them. _How could you be so dumb, Kiriakis, _Sonny thinks. Will's eyes always give him away and this time was no different. The hurt that radiated through those beautiful blue eyes knocked the wind out of him. It was that moment that Sonny knew he had really screwed things up. And Sonny was at a loss on how to fix it.

Sonny remembers back to one of their late night conversations while closing up the coffee shop with Arianna asleep on the couch. Will confiding in Sonny about his childhood.

_"I've never told anyone about this before."_

_"So, why are you telling me?" Sonny had asked, confused and honored. _

_"I don't know," Will said blushing. "I just feel like I can trust you. And I don't feel that way about most people."_

Sonny shakes his head as he gets into his car. _Will finally places trust in someone after not being able to trust people for so long and what do I do? I make him feel like he should have never trusted me. Just to appease Neil. What the hell was I thinking?_

Sonny is at a loss as to where to begin looking for Will. And he figures driving around town would just be a waste.

"He has to come home at some point, right?" Sonny asks himself.

Sonny decides to drive over to Will's apartment and wait for him to get home. He has to come home at some point and he did say he had to pick up his daughter. That would at least buy him some time. Sonny needed to make a stop somewhere else first, before going to Will's apartment. Waiting him out. Sonny had planned to sit outside Will's apartment until he got home. No matter how long it took. He was not going to give up on Will and their friendship.

"What are you doing here?"

Will's voice snaps Sonny out of his stupor. He looks up from his seat on the ground and smiles at the sight of Will holding his daughter. Nothing warmed his heart like the sight of Will with his daughter. But then the tone of voice Will used stuns him a little. He wasn't expecting the anger.

"Look, Will…" Sonny says sadly.

Will hold his hand up and shakes his head. "Not now."

Arianna lifts her head to see who her Dad is talking to and begins crying.

"What's wrong with her?" Sonny asks with concerned.

"It's really none of your business," Will replies with flecks of anger.

The anger stabs at Sonny. He's surprised at how much it hurts for Will to be this mad at him. Sonny sighs and says,"Will."

"Look you made it everything perfectly clear today. I get it."

Will is trying his best to keep it together. To not let Sonny see how broken he feels by his words today. He also doesn't want his daughter to be affected by this. Will feels his body tighten and he is sure Arianna can feel the change in his demeanor when she speaks up.

"What I do, Sonny?" Arianna asks through her tears.

Sonny feels like he was just punched in the gut. He feels doubled over in pain at the little girls words. A girl he has fallen absolutely in love with. Something he never thought he would ever say about any female. But this one wormed her way into his heart and there was no letting go now. Arianna's blue eyes, identical to her father's, were filled with tears and Sonny knew that he was probably responsible for this. Sonny stands up from his spot against Will's door and tried to approach them.

"What do you mean?" Sonny replies, hoping his voice doesn't faulter at the words. He could feel his voice shaking as he said them.

"Daddy says you don't like us," she whispers. "You don't want see me or daddy."

Sonny feels like there's a death grip on his heart. He is trying his best to be able to breath, but it is beginning to feel like an impossible task. Sonny leans his back against the door, just to remain upright. Not only is he heartbroken over Arianna's words, he is getting angry at Will for making his daughter believe that he could ever hate her.

"You told her that?" Sonny asks Will, innocuously.

"Look," Will says, as his voice begins to rise with anger. "I really don't want to talk or see you right now. And clearly you can see how upset my daughter is."

"Well, that is too bad," Sonny retorts. "We are going to talk and I won't take no for an answer."

"There is nothing left to be said," Will whispers, seething. "You made yourself perfectly clear today."

Sonny is beginning to get frustrated with Will for being so stubborn. "I am not leaving until we can talk. So, if you won't talk now then I will just sit right here until you decide to talk to me."

Will sighs knowing that Sonny doesn't plan on giving up. But right now, his mere presence is so unbelievably painful for him. Will is feeling like he has no choice in the matter.

"Fine."

Sonny steps to the side so Will can open the door to his apartment. He opens the door and sighs. "You have got to be kidding me?"

* * *

Brian stormed out of Sonny's apartment fuming at Neil. He had forgotten how self-centered he could be. He was, yet again, questioning their friendship. But Brian would have to deal with that later. Right now he needed to hunt down his boyfriend to try to see if he could salvage the damage that has already been done to their relationship. Brian doesn't remember which grandma Will was going to pick up his daughter up from. He seemed to have too many family members to keep track of. Instead he just goes over to the apartment and waits for him there.

Brian is going over everything that has gone wrong in the last couple of months with Will. And all the mistakes he has made in the relationship, which have been a lot. Brian knows a huge point of contingency has been his feelings towards Arianna. He still feels like she is a little brat who sucks up all of Will's time, but if he can't get over that soon there will be no more him and Will. Especially with her connection with Sonny. Sonny was doing everything in his power to separate them. He had no clue what Neil saw in this guy. Brian did know that Neil needed to do a better job at fighting for Sonny because right now he was only pushing them closer. Although, his comments today did help put a wedge between the two. Brian was angry that Neil felt the need to hurt Will in the process, though.

Neil had texted him that Sonny was now out looking for Will to repair things. This is exactly what neither one of them wanted. They needed to find some way to break up this budding relationship before they remained on the sidelines for good. That was why they were meeting at Sonny's today, to come up with some strategy or plan to make this happen.

Brian began to hear voices outside the apartment. The conversation was muffled by the door, but he could tell that it was Sonny and Will talking.

"Of course they are together, again," Brian says to himself.

A couple of minutes later the talking stops and the door opens. Brian is looking up expectantly at the door, like a lost puppy who finally found his owners. But that look and feeling quickly fades.

"You have got to be kidding me?" Will whispers, exasperated.

That wasn't the reaction he was hoping for. Brian had hoped that a part of Will would be relieved to see him. But he just looked exhausted and annoyed and angry.

Arianna turned her head to see what her Dad was looking at. As soon as she saw him, she began screaming. "Noooooooo!"

"Sweetie," Will asks, concerned. "What's wrong?"

Arianna refuses to look at Will, she just hides her face in his neck and continues to scream. Her grip on her father tightens and her body is shaking from sobs. Sonny moves from behind Will to see what all the commotion is about. Brian and Sonny's eyes lock, each exchanging steely gazes.

"What is he doing here?" Brian asks with venom.

"Brian, I really can't deal with this right now," Will says with a sigh.

"But you can deal with Sonny?" Brian whispers, hurt.

Will is quickly becoming overwhelmed with everything. Arianna screaming in his arms. Brian and Sonny trying to talk to him, trying to plead their cases. He doesn't want to deal with any of it right now. But he also feels like he has no choice. He has to deal with at least one of these guys tonight. And he knows which one that is.

"Brian, can't you see how upset Ari is right now?" Will asks him.

"She's always upset, though."

"When you're around, yes."

"So you are saying it is my fault that you're daughter is upset right now?"

"Well, clearly your presence isn't helping."

"But she has no problem with Sonny, I presume." Brian glares at Sonny and continues. "Maybe Neil was right about you. There is no room for either of us when the two of you are together. We just get tossed aside like yesterday's trash. Have you two ever thought about how this is affecting us?"

"BRIAN," Will yells. "Not now. I will talk with you later. I can't deal with this right now. I need to get Ari settled down and you sure aren't helping matters right now."

"Fine," Brian replies through clenched teeth. "But I am done playing second fiddle to this guy. Will, you need to figure out what you want because I am tired of feeling tossed aside."

Brian gets up from the table and walks out the door. When the door closes, Will lets out the breath he has been holding. He looks down at his daughter, who is finally beginning to calm down.

"Baby girl, can you tell me what's wrong?" Will asks as he walks to sit down with her on the couch.

Sonny is still standing by the door, unsure of what to do or where to go. He doesn't want to upset Arianna any more than she already is. Or Will, for that matter.

Arianna is sitting on Will's lap, facing him. Her tears are finally stopping. She shakes her head at Will's question, then leans into him.

"Ari, you need to tell me what has you so upset. Please?"

Arianna looks over at Sonny and whispers,"He still mad at me?"

Sonny walks over near the couch where the two are sitting. "What makes you think I am mad at you?"

"Daddy says so."

"Ari, that is not what I said," Will replies sternly. "I said that we probably won't be seeing much of Sonny anymore, right?"

Arianna nods her head, leaning back into her father. Sonny looks at the two of them on the couch and he can't help but smile. As tense and emotional as things are right now, nothing seems to make Sonny happier than being around the two of them. Sonny slowly walks so that he is in front of Will and Arianna, then kneels so he is at her level.

"I was never mad at you, sweetie," Sonny whispers with a smile.

Arianna turns to face him and looks at Sonny skeptically and says, "You promise?"

Sonny nods his head and says, "Cross my heart." Sonny draws an X over his chest with his finger. This makes Arianna giggle.

"You feeling better, sweetie?" Wills asks.

"Brian?"

"What about him?"

"He coming back?" She asks, sadly.

"Not tonight."

"Yes. I feel better," Arianna quips and nods her head vigorously.

"Okay!" Will exclaims. "How about I lay you down in bed so Sonny and I can talk?"

"Do I have to?" Arianna moans.

"Yes," Will replies, sternly.

"Sonny?"

"Yes, sweetie?"

"Help tuck me in?" Arianna asks with hopeful eyes.

"Sure," Sonny replies. "Is that okay, Will?"

Will nods his head. He gives Arianna a kiss on the cheek and hands her off to Sonny. Arianna holds tightly around Sonny's neck and giggles.

"Daddy?"

"Yes?"

"You coming?"

"I thought you wanted Sonny to tuck you in."

"Both!" She replies with glee.

"Ok. But no funny business. You need a nap. Plus Sonny and I really need to talk."

"Fine," she says sadly.

The three of them walk towards Arianna's room. "But Daddy! You said cuddly time. You promised."

"I did say that, didn't I?"

Arianna nods her head and smiles. Will smiles back at his daughter, then points Sonny in the direction of his bedroom. "Cuddle time until you fall asleep, okay?"

"Sonny cuddly, too?" Arianna asks Sonny.

Sonny looks at Will, turning shades of red. "Sweetie, I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Pweeeease," Arianna begs.

"It's up to you if you want to join us, Sonny," Will replies, trying to hide his smile.

As hurt as Will still is with Sonny, the thought of laying in bed with him and his daughter makes his heart race. He can feel himself getting excited at the thought of sharing a bed with him. Sonny is scared to lay in Will's bed. Afraid for how he is feeling at the thought of laying in bed with him. Sonny can feel his heart begin to race at the idea of cuddling with them. But he is also reminding himself of everything that has happened today. How he hurt Will and yet, he is inviting him into his bed. Although it is all Arianna's idea. As much as Sonny would love to hop into bed and cuddle with the two of them, he knows it's not right. He knows it is innocent idea, but they both are still with other people. Who knows for how long at this point, but they are in relationships. And as much as the idea excites him, he knows it wouldn't be fair to Neil or Brian.

"No," Sonny sighs. "I will let your dad do all the cuddling this time. But next time, I am all yours."

Will feels a sense of dread. He kind of wished that Sonny would've joined them in bed, but he also knows that Sonny made the right choice. At least, one of them was thinking with their head. With everything going on with Neil and Brian, it would just make a complicated situation even more complicated.

"Okay," Arianna says, sadly.

Sonny sits her down on Will's bed, kisses her on the forehead and walks out of the room. Sonny feels proud of himself for remaining strong and not giving into his desire to be in bed with Will. But now he has to calm himself down after that. It shocks Sonny how excited he got just at the thought of laying in bed with Will. _I definitely need to figure out what the hell is going on with me right now. Why do I feel like this whenever I am around him,_ Sonny thinks.

Will watches Sonny leave and has mixed emotions. He is still so hurt by everything that happened and he isn't sure if they can trust him or his intentions. But he was also hoping to be near Sonny, although he wasn't quite sure why. He has never felt this level of excitement just being around another guy. Will has been trying to convince himself that Brian just wasn't giving him what he needed, so any guy would make him feel this way. But he is starting to think that isn't true. That there is something about Sonny that has made him question everything he has with Brian. Maybe making him realize all this time he has settled for Brian. He pulls his daughter to him and she cuddled into his body. Will is trying to figure out how he feel about Sonny, but with everything that has happened he just feels so confused.

"Love you, daddy," Arianna whispers, sleepily.

"I love you, too, baby girl," he whispers back.


	17. Chapter 17

**I can't believe how many of you have expressed how much you love this story to me! Thank you so much for your kind words and patience! I am so glad you have stuck around to read this and some of my other stories! Thank you so much! Hopefully this chapter doesn't disappoint! :)**

* * *

Sonny runs out to his car to grab the surprise he got for Will before he came by his apartment. He's nervous about the response he will get. _Is this too much?_ Sonny can't help thinking. But he decides to not give in to his doubts. Sonny wants Will to know just how sorry he is.

When Sonny comes back inside, he hides his surprise in Will's kitchen. At least this way, if things don't go well, Will can still see just how sorry he is. Sonny walks to sit down on the couch and he can hear Will softly singing to his daughter. He can't help smiling to himself. His body quickly reacts and he feels like he is on a high, just by hearing his voice. Sonny can hear the love Will has for his daughter and it just makes his heart swell. A giddiness overcomes him and it no longer matters what happened earlier. Because in this moment, Sonny feels happier than he ever remembers feeling. Sonny picks up a book he assumes Will has been reading and remembers Will talking about this being one of his favorite books. Sonny decides to page through the book to see what Will loves so much about it.

_"You've never read it?" Will asks, dumbfounded. "But it's a classic!"_

_"I'm not much of a reader, really," Sonny says, sheepishly. _

_"Seriously?"_

_"Yeah. It's never really been my thing."_

_"Maybe you just haven't read the right books."_

_"Maybe."_

_"So read this one and tell me what you think?"_

_Sonny looks at Will, unsure. _

_"Please?" Will begs. Then teasingly adds,"Do it for me. You won't regret it."_

_"How about I hold you to that?"_

_"What do you have in mind, Mr. Kiriakis?"_

_"If I don't like this book, you have to do something for me."_

_Will raises his eyebrows out of curiosity. "Really? And what would that be?"_

_"A surprise," Sonny whispers, teasingly._

_"Fine," Will smiles. "But what if you do like it? Do I get to make you do something?"_

_"We'll see." Sonny smiles back._

Sonny never had any intentions on reading this book. But he never told that to Will. Will was so excited about Sonny reading one of his favorite books, that Sonny didn't want Will to know he had absolutely no interest in it.

* * *

Will always sings his daughter to sleep when she stays with him. It's the one thing Ari looks forward to at nap time and bedtime. She always requests the same song. Will figured by now she would have gotten tired of hearing it. But every time she wants Will to sing it to her. And every time, Will is more than happy to oblige.

_There's two things I know for sure_

_She was sent here from heaven and she's Daddy's little girl_

_As I drop to my knees by her bed at night_

_She talks to Jesus and I close my eyes_

_And I thank God for all of the joy in my life_

_But most of all the…_

_Butterfly kisses after bedtime prayer_

_Stickin' little white flowers all up in her hair_

_"Walk beside the pony Daddy, it's my first ride_

_I know the cake looks funny Daddy but I sure tried_

_"Oh, with all that I've done wrong, I must have done something right_

_To deserve a hug every morning and butterfly kisses at night_

_Sweet sixteen today_

_And she's lookin' like her mamma a little more every day_

_One part woman, the other part girl_

_To perfume and make-up, from ribbons and curls_

_Trying her wings out in a great big world_

_But I remember..._

_Butterfly kisses after bedtime prayer_

_Stickin' little white flowers all up in her hair_

_You know how much I love you Daddy_

_But if you don't mind I'm only gonna kiss you on the cheek this time\_

_Oh, with all that I've done wrong, I must have done something right_

_To deserve her love every morning and butterfly kisses at night_

_Oh the precious times_

_Oh, like the wind the years go by_

_Precious butterfly_

_Spread your wings and fly  
She'll change her name today_

_and she'll make a promise and I'll give her away_

_Standing in the bride room just staring at her_

_She asked me what I'm thinking and I said "I'm not sure,I just feel like I'm losing my baby girl"_

_And she leaned over...and gave me..._

_Butterfly kisses with her mamma there_

_Stickin' little white flowers all up in her hair_

_"Walk me down the aisle Daddy, it's just about time_

_Does my wedding gown look pretty Daddy? Daddy don't cry"_

_Oh, with all that I've done wrong, I must have done something right_

_To deserve her love every morning and butterfly kisses  
I couldn't ask God for more_

_Man, this is what love is_

_I know I've gotta let her go, but I'll always remember_

_Every hug in the morning and butterfly kisses at night_

__He sings to her until he can hear her breath even out. Will looks down at his daughter who is now peacefully sleeping and he knows how lucky he is to have this amazing little girl. Will doesn't know what he did to deserve her and her love. He doesn't know what he would do without his daughter. Will knows that Ari is the only thing that he has ever done right in his life.

Will gently slides out of bed, doing his best to not disturb his now sleeping daughter. He takes a deep breath and steps into the hall, cracking the door open so he can hear his daughter if she cries out. Will feels like a bundle of nerves. He knows he needs to have this talk with Sonny, but he is dreading it. Will is afraid he will fall for whatever Sonny throws at him, because he wants to believe that Sonny feels the same way he does. Although, Will still isn't quite sure what that is. All he knows right now is how hurt he was earlier. But then he is always so good with Ari and it's just confusing everything for Will.

Will steps into the living room and sees Sonny fast asleep with Will's book splayed across his chest. Will can't help but smile at the picture. He takes his phone out of his pocket and snaps a picture, so he can remember this image forever. Will notices just how serene Sonny looks while he is sleeping. He notices the rise and fall of his chest. And Will can't seem to unlock his eyes from the sight. Will always knew that Sonny was gorgeous, but there is something different about him right now. And he can't seem to put his finger on what it is. All Will knows is that this sight makes him happy. He can almost envision Ari laying in Sonny's arms.

Will shakes the image away and wills himself to move towards Sonny, hating to disturb him. But the sooner they have this conversation the better. Will is attempting to prepare himself for the worst, to no avail. He kneels next to Sonny on the couch and shakes his shoulder.

"Sonny," Will whispers in his ear.

"Hmmmm. Will?" Sonny groans out. Sonny can feel Will's breath against his ear and finds himself getting excited at the feel and closeness.

"Yeah."

Sonny opens his eyes and is staring directly into the icy blue eyes of Will. That sight mixed with the feel of Will's breath on his skin takes Sonny's breath away.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Sonny whispers.

"For falling asleep?" Will asks, curiously.

"Well, yeah," Sonny says quietly. "Among other things."

Sonny sits up on the couch and places Will's book back on the coffee table. Will sits across from Sonny in his rocking chair.

"I finally got you to read that book, I see."

"Yeah. I was thinking about when we talked about that."

"Yeah?" Will smiles.

Sonny smiles sadly and nods his head. "Will, I'm so sorry about today. And what Neil said. And how I reacted. I just. I don't know, I'm sorry."

"Like I said earlier, I get it," Will says sadly, not quite ready to have this conversation. He wants to bask in the glow of the times with Sonny when he didn't feel like his heart was in shambles, which there really aren't a lot. They have only known each other for a few months, but sometimes, for Will, it feels so much longer.

"I don't think you do, Will."

"I'm just an employee of yours. I get that me and my daughter are nothing to you. You have just been nice to us. You made that perfectly clear today."

"Will…" Sonny sighs.

"No. I really don't want to hear anymore. I don't think I can take it," Will says softly, shaking his head.

"Will," Sonny says, voice rising. "You have it all wrong."

Will stares at Sonny, unsure of how to take his last words.

Sonny stands up and walks towards Will. "I really care about you and Ari," he whispers.

"You know, you aren't the first person who has said that to me," Will whispers back, coldly.

Sonny looks down at his hand, hurt by Will's tone. "What do you mean?"

"My daughter comes first, always. And you aren't the first person to pretend to care about my daughter to get to me. But I won't let that happen again."

Will is doing his best to put distance between him and Sonny. He doesn't want Sonny to know how much this is killing him. Will believes that pushing Sonny away is his only option right now. To protect not only himself, but also his daughter.

"Will, where is this coming from? I'm not pretending." Sonny whispers, hurt.

"You said there was nothing between us today. And now you want me to believe that you care."

"I didn't mean what I said earlier, Will. You have to believe me."

"Sonny, why should I believe you now? Were you lying before or are you lying now?"

Sonny starts pacing, unsure of how to explain himself. "What I said before, I didn't mean it."

"So you lied before?"

"No. I mean, I guess. But it's not like that, Will."

"A lie is a lie, Sonny. No matter how you try to spin it. If you lied earlier, how am I supposed to believe what you are saying now?"

"Will, please," Sonny begs. "You have to believe me. I never meant to hurt you."

"Well, it's a little late for that," Will retorts.

"I know how much you've been hurt by people, Will. And I don't want to be on that list of people who disappoint you."

"This isn't about just me anymore. Ari is involved. And I can't let you hurt or disappoint her. I won't let it happen."

"Why would I hurt her? I love that little girl."

"Just stop, Sonny. Stop saying things you know I want to hear," Will says, his voice a mixture of hurt and anger.

"I'm not," Sonny whispers, looking down.

"Don't you get it Sonny? You said we were nothing. And now you say you love my daughter. You don't know what you want."

"That's not true."

"Tell me, then. What do you want?"

"I want you, Will. Okay. I want you."


	18. Chapter 18

**Thank you for all the kind words on this story. I'm usually not this quick to update, so don't expect it too terribly often. I hope everyone continues to love reading this story as much as I love writing it! You guys are seriously the best! And I have promised a couple of you to try to tone down the angst and cliffhangers, so I will do my best with that! Again thank you for all the love and kind words! :)**

* * *

Sonny doesn't know what has come over him. It is absolutely killing him to see the hurt displayed in Will's eyes. All he wants to do is let Will know that he regrets what he said earlier. That he never meant what he said about Will and Ari meaning nothing to him. That Will being mad at him hurts like hell. Before he knows what's happening he just blurts it out, like verbal emesis. He can't stop the words from escaping his lips.

"I want you, Will. Okay. I want you," Sonny yells.

Sonny doesn't know where that just came from and he immediately regrets saying it. He can feel all the blood rushing to his face and he feels the heat spread throughout his body. He collapses his hand over his mouth, willing the words to come back to him. And now he is more confused than he was before, so he can only imagine what Will is thinking. Sonny isn't even sure if this is how he feels. All he does know is the thought of losing Will and Ari in his life scares him. And he doesn't understand it. Sonny has barely known the two of them and yet they have seemed to take camp in his heart. This revelation is scaring Sonny. And now he can't take those words back. _Sonny what did you just do? _He asks himself, as he stares at Will with fear.

Sonny realizes that Will hasn't said anything for the last couple of minutes. And Will just keeps looking at him in shock. He isn't sure how he should respond. Or if he should even believe him. Will is afraid to believe the words that just came out of Sonny's mouth. _What if this is just another game he is playing with me? _Will can't stop himself from thinking. _Sonny has already lied to me once today_._ How do I know what he is saying is true? _ _How can he go from saying I'm nothing to saying he wants me?_ _How can I believe anything he says at this point? And why do I want these words to be true so badly?_

Will's trying to decide if he should listen to his brain, which is telling him to run as far away from this situation as humanly possible. Or his heart, which is now racing and telling him to grab Sonny in his arms and kiss him with all the passion he can muster. Will is so confused. He doesn't know how to feel or even what to do. _Even if his words are true, what does that mean for Neil. What does that mean for me? And Brian? _ Will wonders to himself. All of this is becoming too much for Will. He doesn't even know how to process it all. Will finally gets the courage to speak.

"I think you should go," Will whispers with a shaking voice.

"But, Will…" Sonny whispers, voice cracking. He feels like his heart just dropped into the pit of his stomach.

"Please leave."

Will is refusing to make eye contact with Sonny. Will gets up from the chair and walks to the door. Sonny follows him, sadly. Will opens the door and Sonny begins to leave. Then he turns around and looks Will in the eyes.

"I'm sorry," Sonny whispers, grabbing on to Will's arm. "Please believe me. You are the last person I would ever want to hurt. And tell Ari goodbye for me."

Will nods his head and says, barely audible, "Goodbye."

Will closes the door behind Sonny. Then lays his head against the door, hoping to calm his mind down. But right now, he knows that isn't possible. Will knows he needs to talk with the one person who can help him make sense of everything he is thinking and feeling. He goes back to his bedroom and crawls into bed with his sleeping daughter. Will lets the silent tears slide down his cheek as he holds his daughter to him. Knowing his heart is breaking, but not sure why.

* * *

Sonny watches as the door silently closes in front of him and his eyes begin to glass over. He doesn't remember a time when his chest hurt like this. The pain that is radiating from his heart is excruciating. And he knows it was all his fault.

"Me and my stupid mouth always get me in trouble," Sonny whispers to himself sadly.

Sonny can't believe that he uttered those words to Will today _I want you._

_How could Will not be confused?_ Sonny thinks sadly. _I go from telling him he is nothing but an employee to me. Then I tell him I want him. Hell, I am confused. _

Sonny walks to his car knowing he has to do something. If he is this conflicted with his feelings with Will, then he knows he has to do something about his relationship with Neil. Sonny knew it wasn't fair to stay with Neil if he may have feelings for someone else. Plus Sonny knew he hadn't truly been happy with Neil for a while. But he had been content with their relationship and he didn't really see any problems with that. Until he met Will. It is like Will shined this light on him and his relationship. And now he could finally see things clearly. That's when things started to crumble. He knew it. Neil knew it. And apparently so did Brian.

Sonny knew it was time to finally have an honest conversation with Neil. The events of the day made him realize that he can't stay in this relationship if he wasn't all in. And today made it abundantly clear to everyone involved, that Sonny was no longer all in with Neil.

_Hey. Meet me at the apartment. We need to talk. –S_

_Still here. –N_

Sonny was slightly perturbed that Neil was still there when he had asked him to leave before he left. But he couldn't think about that now. Sonny needed to think about the conversation they needed to have, which he was dreading. As much as he didn't want to have this conversation, he knew it had to be done. Neil at least deserved to know where Sonny's head was at.

Sonny can't believe what this day has turned into. Everything started out fine and then all hell had to break loose. But he pretty much knew deep down this was bound to happen. As much as he tried to deny that there could be something growing between him and Will, he knew it deep down. And Sonny was pretty sure that Will felt it, too.

Sonny opens the door to his apartment. Takes a deep breath and is shocked by what he sees. The lights are all off in the apartment. The only light is the soft glow from candles that have been strategically placed around the apartment. The kitchen table is covered with a white cloth and there is food set out. Neil is standing next to the table with a bouquet of flowers. A mixture of primroses and purple hyacinths were in his hand. Sonny knew this was Neil's way of apologizing for everything that happened that day. This is what he always did when he messed up with Sonny. Neil was a fan of grand gestures to prove he cared, but this time Sonny knew it wouldn't work.

A romantic dinner. The same bouquet of flowers saying 'I'm sorry'. The begging and pleading that he was sorry and that this would never happen again. They hadn't been together that long, but Neil was always doing something he needed to apologize for. He was always having to do something to get back into Sonny's good graces. He acted first and asked questions later. At first, it was fun and kind of exciting. But now, all it did was create problems between the two.

Sonny knew he couldn't keep dragging Neil along when he really wasn't completely invested in this relationship. And no amount of grand gestures were going to change that.

"Welcome home, baby!" Neil says enthusiastically.

"Neil, you shouldn't have…" Sonny whispers back.

Neil walks towards Sonny and his large smile begins to fade. "What's wrong?"

"We need to talk, Neil."

Neil's demeanor quickly changed from ecstatic to contemplative. "I know. I figured we could make up over dinner. I really want you to know that I am sorry about how I treated Will today. If you care about him, then so do I."

"Neil, I never said we were making up. And you always do this. Mess up then do something to make up for it."

"What do you mean, Sonny?" Neil asks, tearfully.

"I don't think us is a good idea anymore."

"What do you mean we aren't a good idea anymore?" Neil asks and his voice begins to rise.

"It's not fair for me to be in a relationship with you if I am not completely invested in this relationship."

"Not fair? Not invested? Where is this coming from?"

"You said it yourself today, Neil. That I was ruining our relationship with my 'infatuation' with Will."

"Sonny, you know I didn't mean that. I say things I don't mean when I'm angry."

"Is that supposed to be helping your cause?" Sonny asks, perplexed.

"My cause? I have a cause now?"

"Neil," Sonny sighs. "How is getting hateful with me and the people I care about when you are angry helping us? I have overlooked this so many times. But I can't keep overlooking it. And I can't keep denying my feelings."

"For Will?" Neil spits out with disdain.

"This isn't about Will right now. This is about you and me."

"But we were fine before Will entered the picture."

"Were we, Neil?"

"Of course we were!" Neil exclaims. "He's ruined everything!"

"Neil, just stop!" Sonny lets out with an exasperated sigh. "If anything, Will made me see what's been missing in our relationship."

"But everything was perfect with us, Sonny. Don't you remember?"

"If we were a strong enough unit, then nobody could come between us."

"What are you trying to say? That you are choosing some guy with a kid who you barely know over me. Your boyfriend of 6 months."

"I am not choosing anyone, Neil. Damnit. Have you listened to a single thing I have said?"

"I have heard it all loud and clear," Neil shouts. "You want Will. You don't love me."

"That is not what I have said," Sonny's voice is getting louder with frustration.

Sonny takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. He is trying not to get angry with Neil, but it is becoming increasingly more difficult. His patience are running thin. And this day has not helped with that. Sonny doesn't want to hurt Neil. It is the last thing he wants to do. But Sonny isn't quite sure how to get it through his head that he doesn't want to be with him right now. That this relationship has just been floating on for far too long.

"Neil, can you just hear me out on this?" Sonny says softly.

Neil looks at him with daggers in his eyes. "Isn't that what I've been doing? Listening to you?"

"Actually. Not really."

"Say what you need to say," Neil spats.

"This isn't about Will. This isn't about you. This is about me. I need space to figure out how I am feeling. And I am not being fair to you by dragging you along when I'm confused with what I feel for you and for Will. And as much as you don't want to admit it, you know that something has changed with us. Hell, when is the last time we had sex? I can't even remember."

"Ever since you met Will."

"That's not true, Neil."

"Actually, it is. We haven't slept together since you hired Will."

"Oh."

"Don't you see, Sonny? That's why I've been fighting like hell for us. Because you stopped giving two shits about this relationship as soon as you met Will and his precious daughter. And this is what I was afraid of. That you would choose them over me."

"Why didn't you ever say anything about it?"

"I always said something about it! You kept calling me jealous and paranoid. But he is all you ever talked about. And you guys always seemed to end up together. So was I really jealous and paranoid?"

"Neil. I guess I never realized how you truly felt," Sonny says sadly.

"Yeah. Well, it's too late now isn't it. Like I said, you ruined our relationship."

"I'm so sorry, Neil. I never wanted to hurt you."

"You have been hurting me for months and you never cared before. Why do you all the sudden care now?"

"Don't do that, Neil!" Sonny exclaims, angrily. "I have always cared about you. And you know it. I opened my life up to you when you had no one else. So how can you honestly say those things to me. You know me."

"Maybe I just thought I did," Neil says with bitterness.

"I honestly can't believe you right now!" Sonny shouts. "If you think my intentions were to hurt you, then fine. Believe what you need to believe. But know that I have always cared about you and loved you."

"Real nice. Throwing that love word around now!"

"Neil, why don't you just leave! I don't want to argue with you or prove to you how much I care about you. But it is pretty evident right now how you feel about me."

"If that's what you want, then fine," Neil huffs. "I will be back for my stuff later!"

"Don't bother. I will get your stuff together and drop it off for you."

Neil turns around and storms out of the apartment. He's about to close the door when he turns around and looks Sonny in the eyes. He says with a smirk,"By the way, me and Brian fucked all over this apartment. Have a nice life."

Neil slams the door behind him. Sonny just looks at the closed door in shock. "Son of a bitch."


	19. Chapter 19

Sonny can feel himself trembling with anger. He feels like his blood is boiling. He can't seem to recall the last time he has felt this angry. This betrayed. He can feel his emotions consuming him. Taking over his body. He is feeling out of control for the second time today. But this time for a very different reason. All Sonny wants to do is scream. Or punch something. He needs some sort of release to get all of this anger out of his system. He picks up the flowers and throws them across the room as he lets out a guttural scream. This provides Sonny with a small amount of catharsis. And the first thing his minds goes to is Will.

Sonny has come to realize that maybe he's been denying his feelings for Will. He keeps trying to convince himself that he felt only a friendship towards him. And he was actually able to fool himself into believing that. Sonny realizes that he wasn't quite as convincing to other people. Namely, Brian and Neil.

Sonny knows that he was doing this for Neil. He chose to be with Neil. And what did Neil do in return? Cheat on him with Will's boyfriend. But Sonny begins second guessing himself. _Was this just another one of Neil's games? Did he say this to hurt me? Did he want me to go run to Will with this information? Was Neil telling me the truth?_ So many things are swimming in Sonny's head and he can't keep things straight. His head is pounding. He is emotionally and physically exhausted from the events of today. And utterly confused on what he should do next.

Sonny knows who he needs to talk to. He needs help clarifying all the thoughts and feelings that are in his head. Someone who can help ground him and help process everything. Sonny grabs his coat and heads out the door, hoping someone can help him solve this crisis.

* * *

"Daaaaaddy!" Arianna shrieks as she bounces on the bed.

Will groans, still feeling completely drained from the day. He opens his eyes and sees his daughter's dancing blue eyes and everything just melts away.

"Where Sonny?"

"He had to leave."

"Why?" Arianna asks sadly.

"What are you doing up?" Will asks, avoiding his daughter's question. Then he smiles at his daughter and pulls her into a hug. This sends Ari into a fit of giggles and Will begins to tickle her.

"Daaaaaaddy!" Arianna exclaims with laughter. "Stoooooop."

Will looks into his daughter's eyes, which are full of laughter and joy. He knows this is what happiness feels like. _Well, at least contentment_, he presumes. Will believes he knows what would make him feel completely fulfilled. He has had fleeting moments of it over the last couple months. And it was in those moments that Will began understand what he has been missing in his life.

Will knows heartache. Loneliness. Detachment. Struggle. But happiness he doesn't really know or understand. Everything in his life has encompassed pain, in one way or another. And regret. And longing. But those feelings went away briefly when Sonny was around. Will struggled with this. He tried to figure out what it was that he was feeling because he wasn't sure what it was. He wasn't sure what it was about Sonny that made his heart race. That made him feel so alive. That made his life have a new meaning. A different meaning.

Arianna gave Will's life meaning, of course. But it was different how he felt about his daughter and how he felt about Sonny. Arianna brought him a joy he never thought he could have. A type of unconditional love that was all-consuming. He was so preoccupied with loving his daughter and protecting her from everything. Especially the step-father that she never should have had. Will knew almost losing Arianna changed everything for him. Seeing her so helpless in that hospital bed killed him. It was that moment that he knew he would sacrifice anything and everything for her. And then Brian came along. This made Will believe that he could have it all. He could have the love of his daughter and also find someone to love. He had thought he found that someone to love him and his daughter in Brian. Someone to take on this packaged deal. And Will felt so lucky that he could have it all, because this was not how his life worked. Will knew he wasn't the type to have the happy ending. So he overlooked things that he probably shouldn't have.

Will had hoped that Brian would love his daughter. He acted like he did at first. Brian would dote on her. Buy her gifts. Spoil her. But the longer they were together, the more that changed. He looked past the fact that his daughter and Gabi weren't Brian's biggest fans. Will knew that with time they would see what he saw. Plus Gabi really wasn't the best judge of character if she was willing to look past all of Nick's transgressions. But Will finally came to see that he was the one that was wrong about Brian. And he has Sonny to thank for that. It was Sonny that made Will see how unhappy he truly was. Because being around Sonny was like nothing he has ever felt. Will wanted to be around Sonny all the time. He found himself making up excuses to see him or talk to him. But a part of him remains in denial about how he really feels. His life with Brian is good. He is content.

"Daaaaaadddddyyyy," Arianna says pulling on Will's shirt, snapping him out of his reverie.

"Yes, baby girl?"

"Huuuuungry!" She says, patting her stomach.

"Well, how about Daddy fixes that?"

Arianna nods her head enthusiastically. Will picks her up and walks into the kitchen.

"Baby girl, what would you like to eat?"

"Ice creeeeam!" Arianna yells out, jubilantly.

Will shakes his head, smiles and says,"Do you want to try that again?"

"Animal crackers?" She asks quietly.

"How about I cut up an apple and we split that with animal crackers?"

Arianna nods her head. Will lifts her into the booster seat, then grabs some animal crackers for her to eat while he cuts up the apple.

"Juice?"

"Apple or orange, sweetie."

"Apple!"

Will goes into the refrigerator to grab the apple juice when he sees a large brown paper bag sitting on the shelf. He doesn't recall putting that in there, so he grabs it with the apple juice. Will grabs one of Ari's sippy cups and fills it with juice. He places the cup in front of his daughter.

"What's dat, daddy?" She asks, pointing to the bag on the counter.

"I don't know, sweetie. Maybe Brian bought something."

"Open!"

Will smiles at his daughter and her curiosity. He knows that she gets that from him. Will brings the bag over to the table, so his daughter can see what it is.

"Cake?" She asks curiously.

Will pulls a pink, square box out of the bag. He knows this can only mean one thing, Brian got him something from his favorite bakery. Will smiles at the thought that Brian may actually be apologizing for today. Will lifts open the top and sees in big blue frosted letters _FORGIVE ME. _

"Whats dat?" Arianna asks, pointing at the writing.

"It says, forgive me," Will whispers.

"Why?"

"Daddy had a little misunderstanding with Brian today. I guess he is saying sorry."

"Oh. We eat?"

Will smiles at his daughter. "How about we share a small piece?"

"Yaaaaaaay!" Arianna screams excitedly, throwing her hands in the air.

Will can't help but smile at his daughter. Her joy and laughter is infectious to him. No matter what is going on, she can always lighten his mood. Will cuts into the cake and it is not what he expected. Brian always gets vanilla cake with vanilla whipped icing. But this cake was his favorite and Brian always refused to buy it. Will sees that the cake is double chocolate fudge with vanilla icing. And he smiles to himself that Brian would actually get this for him. Will knows that this shows how sorry Brian is and how much he wants to work things out.

Will cuts a small piece of the cake and puts it on a plate for his daughter to have. He knows by giving her some cake that bath time will be coming up very soon. Arianna doesn't even use the spoon that Will set out for her. She digs in with her hands, making a huge mess and Will just sits back to watch her and laugh. It is these moments that he loves and misses the most when she isn't around.

"My faborite," Arianna squeals with a mouthful of cake.

Will wonders if he was wrong about Brian. That maybe his doubts were ill-conceived. That he was just looking for an out. Because if Brian would do something this sweet, maybe he had it all wrong. This is the first time Brian has ever done something like this before, and Will begins to believe that maybe things are changing between them. Maybe things can actually get better. Maybe he is coming around to loving Arianna and him like they deserve to be loved. Maybe his luck really is turning around.

"After we clean you up, how about we go thank Brian for this cake?"

"Have to?" Arianna groans.

"Yes. He got us this cake, so we need to thank him." Will replies sternly.

"Fine. See Sonny?"

"No, sweetie. Sonny is busy."

"No bye."

"You were asleep when he left. You can see him later, sweetie."

"Wanna see now!" Arianna says, defiantly.

Will sighs and says, "Maybe."


	20. Chapter 20

**Thank you all for always providing me with such kind words about this story. I appreciate it so much! And thank you for sticking with me. I know I have made it hard to be patient. But I promise we are getting closer to the good stuff! I love hearing from you all! Again thank you so much! :)**

* * *

"Sonny? What a pleasant surprise!"

"Hey, Dad. I really need to talk to you. Are you free?"

"Of course, Son. What's wrong?"

Sonny sits down on the couch and his father follows suit. Sonny sighs and says, "I broke up with Neil today."

"I'm so sorry, Sonny. Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

"Can I ask why?"

"Well, you know how we were having issues, right?"

Justin nods his head and says, "He had issues with your friendship with Will, right?"

"Yeah. That among other things."

"Is that why you broke up with him? Because of your friendship with Will?"

"Sort of. I guess."

"Why don't you start at the beginning."

Sonny nods his head, takes a deep breath, and tells his dad everything that has happened over the last couple of months. Will working at the coffee shop. Will's daughter. All the late night talks after work. Spending time with Arianna and Will. Missing his anniversary with Neil to stay with Arianna at the hospital. Brian and Neil. Gabi and Will. Arianna and Will. And his confusion about his feelings for Will.

"Well, sounds like you have had a lot going on."

Sonny smiles weakly at Justin and says, "Yeah. It's been interesting."

"How do you feel about breaking up with Neil?"

"There's a sense of relief. And I know that is terrible to say, Dad. But we just weren't good together. Even you and mom said that."

"Well, you never seemed happy with him. Were you happy with Neil?"

"No. I don't think so. I think I tried to convince myself that I was. And then when he said he and Brian slept together."

"Wait. Your boyfriend and Will's boyfriend had sex while you guys were still with them?" Justin asks with confusion.

"That's what he said before he left my apartment today."

"Do you believe him?"

"I don't know, Dad. He says things he doesn't mean when he is hurt and angry. He says whatever he can to make the other person hurt just as much as he is hurting. So I don't know if he cheated on me or not."

"Does it matter to you at this point?"

"Of course it matters!"

"What I mean to say is aren't both things just as bad. Cheating on you or purposely hurting you with words. Different means, but same result."

"When you put it that way, I guess you are right. I guess it doesn't matter if he cheated or not. But I shouldn't be surprised if he did in fact cheat."

"Why's that?"

"Because he has cheated in all of his relationships. So why should I think this one would be any different? Why should I think that I would be the one he decided to be faithful to?"

"Sonny, you can't blame yourself for this. You have every right to believe that your boyfriend wouldn't cheat on you. Did you ever have any doubts about his fidelity?"

"Of course there were times. But it's not like I was being a great boyfriend the last couple of months. I was spending a lot of time with Will and Arianna. Neil kept trying to tell me he was feeling neglected. But I ignored it. Then I chose Will and his daughter over celebrating my anniversary with Neil. He kind of checked out awhile ago. Or maybe I checked out.I don't really know for sure. But he was angry all the time. And he kept making these secret calls. But I was too preoccupied to really care or pay attention. So, how can I not blame myself for this?"

"Son, there are better ways of dealing with things than cheating. Neil wasn't able to convey to you how he felt. You can't blame yourself for that."

"But I kept choosing Will over Neil. And I never even realized I was doing it. Until now."

"Why were you choosing Will over Neil?"

"Things were just easy with Will. Yeah, he has his drama. Baby mama drama, especially. But I could talk to him like I haven't been able to talk to anyone else. Everything just felt so natural. And I love being around him. I felt happier being around him."

"Do you love Neil?"

Sonny shakes his head and says, "I care about Neil and I love him, but I'm not in love with him."

"Do you love Will?"

Sonny is taken aback by his father's question. "What do you mean, Dad? We have only known each other for a couple of months. How could I be in love with him?"

"I didn't ask if you were in love with him. I asked if you loved him. Sonny, tell me honestly. How do you feel about Will?"

"I care about him. Especially his little girl. When the two of them are together. I can't explain it, Dad. It's just the most amazing thing."

Justin smiles at his son and says, "You should see the way you light up when you talk about them."

Sonny begins to blush. "I told him I wanted him today. And then he kicked me out. So does it really matter how I feel about him?"

"Of course it matters. You need to figure out how exactly you feel about Will. And you have to be honest with yourself here, son."

"I know, Dad. But what if he doesn't feel the same way. What if he doesn't care about me like I care about him."

"I highly doubt that from what you are saying. If you truly want to be with him, maybe you just need to give him some time and space to figure out how he feels. You have been denying how you feel about Will because of Neil. But now Neil is no longer in the picture, right? But is Brian out of the picture for Will?"

"Honestly, I have no clue where they stand. I know they also have been on shaky ground for a while."

"Do you think Will knows where they stand? Do you think Will knows how he feels about you?"

"I really don't know."

"And you said Will has a daughter. Where does she fit into all of this?"

"I love that little girl so much," Sonny says quietly.

"I can tell. But you have to remember, Will's daughter has to come first."

Sonny sighs, "I know, Dad. Thanks. I have a lot to think about. But I need to get some sleep. I am exhausted from the day."

Sonny stands up as his father does the same. They hug each other and walk to the door.

"Don't forget to call me. I want to know how all of this goes."

"I will, Dad."

"And stop being such a stranger."

Sonny smiles and waves bye to his dad.

* * *

"Daaaaaddy! Have to?" Arianna whines.

"Yes," Will laughs. "You are far too sticky to not take a bath right now."

"Don't wanna," she protests.

Will picks her up and carries her to the bathroom. Arianna is wiggling in his arms, trying to unsuccessfully get herself free from her father's grasp.

"See, your bath is all ready."

Will places his daughter on the ground. Arianna crosses her arms and begins to pout. "Don't wanna."

"Off with the clothes, baby girl."

Arianna shakes her head and says,"Don't wanna."

"And why not?"

"No Brian!" Arianna says sternly, stomping her foot on the floor with indignation.

"And no Sonny."

"Buuuuut Daaaaaaddy!"

"That's the deal. If you don't take a bath, you don't get to see Sonny after we see Brian."

"Fine," Arianna says, pouting.

Arianna peels off her clothes and hops in the bath tub. She begins splashing around and giggling. Then begins singing, "Wanna see Sonny!"

Will shakes his head and smiles. A part of him also wants to see Sonny, but he is still so confused about everything. Especially after Brian bought them that cake. Will hates how he basically kicked Sonny out of the apartment. But he was so overwhelmed and he just didn't know what to say or do. And deep down, Will knows that Sonny would never intentionally hurt someone. Especially Arianna. It's written all over his face how much Sonny adores his daughter.

"All done!" Arianna exclaims.

"That was fast!"

"Wanna see Sonny!"

"Let me check you out."

Arianna stands up in the tub and spins around. "See?"

"You look all clean to me. And you are no longer all sticky!"

"Done!" Arianna exclaims, happily. She lifts her arms up and Will drapes a towel around her. Then lifts her out of the tub and places her on the ground. He empties the tub then dries his daughter off.

"Now what would you like to wear, baby girl?"

"Dress!"

"A dress? But you never like to wear the dresses we bought for you."

"Look pretty for Sonny!"

"You want to look pretty for Sonny?"

"Yes!"

"And why is that, sweetie?"

"Love Sonny!"

"Oh, do you now? I would never have guessed that!" Will replies smiling.

Arianna drops the towel and races off to her room to pick out the dress she wants to wear to see Sonny. She picks her favorite sundress that is bright yellow with white polka dots. "This one!"

Will saunters into the room and looks at the dress his daughter is pointing to. "You want to wear that one?"

"Faborite!"

"I know," Will says sadly.

_"where did this dress come from?" Will asks Gabi._

_"Nick bought it for her."_

_"Was this before or after he tried to take her away from me?"_

_"Don't be like this, Will!"_

_"Don't be like what, Gabi? Your husband tried to take my daughter away from me. How should I be?"_

_"He did not."_

_"Yeah he did. And isn't that part of the reason he is back in prison now?"_

_"You know the answer to that,Will,," Gabi huffs. "Do you not want her to have that dress because Nick got it for her?"_

_"I don't want any reminders of him in our lives, okay?"_

_"No. That is not okay. He is still my husband."_

_"That doesn't mean I want him a part of her life. Your bad judgment doesn't need to affect our daughter."_

_"Really, Will? It's her favorite dress! Just let it go."_

"Daaad-dddy!" Arianna drawls out.

Will is snapped out of his thoughts and tries to refocus on his daughter. But these fleeting reminders of Nick just haunt him to his core. It takes Will back to the worst time in his life. The time when he almost lost everything.

Will puts on a fake smile and says softly,"yes, sweetie?"

"Don't like dress?" Arianna pouts.

"Whatever you would like to wear is fine by me."

"That one!" Arianna points at the dress again. Will walks over and retrieves it from the closet.

Will helps her slip into the dress. They put on her yellow jellies that match the dress. Then head to the bathroom to fix her hair and brush her teeth. Will never has any clue what to do with her hair. Luckily, he has two little sisters or else he would be in real trouble when it comes to that department. What he does know how to do is thanks to them and Gabi. He pulls her hair back into a ponytail and wraps a yellow ribbon around her hair, the way Gabi taught him how to do. Her black, bouncy curls descend down her back. Will then grabs the toothbrush and helps her brush her teeth.

"Sonny time!" Arianna shrieks.

"Almost," Will sighs. "Can you wait for me in the living room, sweetie? I will be right out."

Arianna nods her head enthusiastically and races down the hall. Will watches her race off and takes a deep breath and leans against the door frame. Will isn't sure why, but all the sudden he feels anxious about talking with Brian and Sonny. Will decided he would let Arianna stay with Sonny while he talked with Brian. He still isn't quite sure why she freaks out in the presence of Brian. And Ari has never said why she doesn't like him_. But then_, Will reasons, _she is only 3._ Since his daughter loves spending time with Sonny and Will completely trusts him with his daughter, he figures he can kill two birds with one stone.

Will walks out into the living room and sees his daughter sitting in her chair, swinging her legs. She is glowing with excitement.

"What's dis, daddy?"

Arianna holds up a blue envelope that Will doesn't recall seeing.

"I don't know, sweetie. Where did you find it?"

"On floor. In kitchen."

Will sees his name written across the envelope. He wonders where this came from. He takes it from his daughter's awaiting hands then breaks the seal.

He pulls a card out of the envelope. All that is written on the front of the card is _I'm sorry._ Will opens the card and sees that it is from Sonny. He wrote him a message on the otherwise blank card.

"What is it?" Arianna asks, curiously.

"It's a card from Sonny."

"Sonny?" Arianna perks up at the sound of his name.

"Yeah," Will whispers.

"What it say?"

"That he's sorry, sweetie."

"Why?"

Will peels his eyes away from the card and looks into his daughter's eyes. "Remember how I told you earlier we wouldn't see much of Sonny anymore?"

Arianna nods her head sadly.

"Well, we had a little disagreement earlier. And he is apologizing for that."

"Oh," she whispers. "Forgiben?"

Will smiles and nods his head. Arianna jumps up from her chair and runs into Will's arms. He sits her up on his lap as he begins to finally read the words that Sonny wrote.

_Will,_

_I am so sorry for what I said earlier. I really hope you can forgive me. You have to know that I would never want to hurt you or Arianna. I care about the both of you so much. And to show just how sorry I am I bought you this cake. I remember you saying how much you love this bakery and this cake. But you never got to have it because Brian doesn't like chocolate. I know this is no way makes up for the words I said and the hurt I caused. Please let me make it up to you and Arianna. I would like to show you just how much you mean to me. _

_Sonny_


	21. Chapter 21

**I am so sorry this took me so long to update. I have been studying to take boards, which I took yesterday. So, I had to set this aside for the last couple of weeks. I am so sorry to leave you guys hanging! I will be leaving for vacation in the morning, so it will be a little while before I will post another update. I wanted to post a new update before I left. I will try to make up for my absence when I get back! Thank you all so much for taking the time to read this story and leave your feedback. I love hearing it and thank you all so much for being so amazing! :)**

* * *

Will is clutching the card from Sonny in his hand as he knocks on the door. Arianna is squirming around in his arms, too excited to stay still. Will waits a couple of seconds and doesn't hear anything, so he tries knocking again.

"Where he at?" Arianna asks inquisitively.

"I don't know, baby girl."

Will knocks on the door a couple more times, but no one answers. Dread begins to slowly consume Will and he begins questioning himself. _What am I doing here? Does he even want to see me? He probably hates me right now, _Will thinks sadly.

"No Sonny?" Arianna pouts.

"Sorry, sweetie. Looks like he's not going to answer the door."

"SOOOOOOOONNNY!" Arianna shouts at the door.

"Arianna," Will says, sternly. "Do not yell like that. You are going to disturb his neighbors."

"But daaaaddy," Arianna begins to cry. "Wanna see Sonny."

"We can't right now. Maybe later."

"See Brian?" She asks distastefully.

"I am going to see Brian. But you are going to spend some time with Grandma Sami, okay?"

"Okay," Arianna replies sadly.

Will and Arianna head back to the car. Doubt is completely consuming Will now. He had text Sonny before they left that they were coming by and now he was sure that Sonny was avoiding him. Will was convinced after kicking Sonny out of his apartment earlier today that he had caused this change in Sonny. He knew Sonny must hate him and now he didn't want to see either of them. And Will was filled with regret.

* * *

Sonny thought he heard someone shouting his name, but his mind was still kind of hazy from sleep. He walked to the door of his apartment to check if someone was outside. He saw a piece of paper sitting on top of his welcome mat. He picks it up and sees that it is from Will, on the envelope of the card he left for him earlier today.

_Sonny,_

_Sorry we missed you. Thank you for the card and the cake. I would love to take you up on your offer, if it still stands. I understand if you no longer want to after today. But I know Arianna would love to see you again. _

_Will_

Sonny is torn between his father's advice to give Will space and his need to see Will again. His head and his heart have been in a constant struggle ever since he met Will and so many times he has let his heart lead him. But where has that gotten him so far? An ex boyfriend. Falling in love with the most adorable little girl ever. Getting kicked out of Will's apartment. And left completely shattered. Every fiber of his being is screaming to call Will, but Sonny is trying to fight these feelings yet again.

When it comes to Will, Sonny has begun to question so many things. _What if he is only doing these things because of Arianna and he really doesn't want to see me?_ Sonny is so unsure of where Will stands with how he feels. He has finally resigned himself to wanting Will and Arianna in his life completely, but he fears that Will may not want the same. Deep down Sonny believes that Will feels the same way, but self-doubt continues to plague him. He is beginning to convince himself that their friendship is solely based on Arianna. And Sonny is afraid that if he truly gives into his feelings for Will that he will only be left heartbroken.

Sonny knows he couldn't take being rejected by Will for a second time today. He decides to figure things out in the morning when his mind isn't so hazy and the emotions of the day aren't so raw.

* * *

Will nervously taps on the door, dread filling him completely. He knows this is what he needs to do, but he really doesn't want to do it. Will knows that no matter what happens between him and Sonny in the future and whether or not they have a future, this needs to be done. It is the right thing. It is the fair thing.

The door swings open and Brian is staring at him with a shocked look on his face.

"What are you doing here?" He stammers out.

"We need to talk," Will says quietly.

"What more could we possibly have to talk about?" Brian questions with contempt.

"What do you mean, Brian?"

"You made your choice abundantly clear today."

"What are you talking about?"

"Have you already forgotten everything that happened today? You kicking me out of your apartment for him."

"Sonny?" Will asks.

"Yes," Brian seethes.

"I told you we would talk later. That it wasn't a good time. You saw how upset Ari was. "

"It's always about Ari, isn't it? That's been your excuse all along to justify your behavior. Ari likes Sonny, so that's why you guys were always together. But that's not really true. You and I both know that."

"Brian, are you kidding me? You know my daughter always comes first. And the fact that she didn't like you should have been my warning sign a long time ago."

"So you are letting your toddler makes decisions for your life now?" Brian asks with accusation.

"If she doesn't like or trust you, I can't have you around her. And I kept thinking all she needed was to get to know you. But apparently I was wrong. And stupid to think anything would change."

"Nice, Will. Blame your daughter for ending our relationship."

"That's not what I am doing!" Will exclaims.

Will really didn't want this conversation to go this way. He didn't want to fight with Brian. All they have done for months is fight and he couldn't deal with it anymore. Will was also so tired of the anger Brian had towards his daughter and Sonny. He knew that there was nothing he could say that would change Brian's mind, so he felt like he has been fighting a losing battle for so long.

Will sighs and continues sadly, "I never meant to hurt you, Brian. I need you to know that."

"It doesn't matter," Brian states, coldly.

"It does matter. You mean a lot to me. You have to know that."

"Will, why don't you just leave? I really tired of hearing all about your guilty conscience."

"Seriously, Brian? That's what you think this is all about?"

"Yeah, I do. You chose Sonny a long time ago. You chose him over me. And now you feel sorry. This is how you plan on repenting? Because I don't want to hear it. I am so tired of your excuses."

"You think this is me repenting? Making excuses? I did care about you, Brian. And I do love you. But clearly I made the right decision by choosing Sonny over you."

"And the truth comes out!" Brian exclaims with venom.

Will shakes his head and sighs,"I guess I will bring by your stuff later."

"Don't bother, Will. I don't want any of it back. You can keep it."

Will walks towards the door filled with anger and sadness. He opens the door and turns to look at Brian, who has turned his back towards Will.

"I guess this is goodbye," Will whispers.

Brian nods his head and says, "Yeah. It is."


	22. Chapter 22

**Hey guys! Sorry I took so long with this update! I will try my best to make it all up to you guys! For those who asked, yes vacation was amazing. And yes, I did pass my boards! Thank you all for asking and caring! Also thank you for sticking with me through this story. I can't even say how much I appreciate all of your kind words and amazing reviews. Also thank you so much for continuing to read this story! I love you all so much! Hope this new update was worth the wait! :)**

* * *

Will lays awake, staring at the ceiling for the third night in a row. Tossing and turning. Looking for any distraction that can turn his mind away from Sonny. But nothing has worked for three nights. He's not sure if anything will work at this point. He no clue what to do.

"I left that note for him, that means it's his turn to reach out. That means if he wants to see me again, he will say something, right?" Will asks, trying to convince himself that he is doing the right thing.

The doubts continue to flood him. And his heart feels like it is sinking into his stomach. Nothing can turn his thoughts away from Sonny. Not even his daughter. He tries to distract himself when he is with Arianna, but it seems impossible since all she talks about is Sonny.

"What am I going to do?" Will whispers to himself.

* * *

Sonny checks his phone for the hundredth time that day. He keeps hoping that he will get a message from Will telling him that he is no longer with Brian. That Will wants to see him. That Will needs to see him. That everything is different now. That they can finally be together after wanting this for so long. Because right now that is all he really wants. Sonny misses being around Will and Arianna. They have become such a major part of his life in such a short time and Sonny is unsure how that even happened. Not that he is complaining, because he loves it. He loves how much everything in his life has changed because of those two and he isn't ready to give that up.

Sonny had no clue this whole giving Will space thing would be this hard. That it would hurt this much to not be around him all the time. Sonny had gotten so use to Will and Arianna's constant presence in his life. And now everything seemed so empty.

Sonny wants to give in and call Will, but he knows that is not what he needs right now. That Will needs space to figure things out. That he needs space to decide whether or not he wants to be with Sonny. Sonny knows that he is doing the right thing.

"But why does it have to be so hard? And why does this hurt so much?" Sonny asks himself, sadly.

* * *

"Do you think I should just call him?" Will asks, earnestly.

"You clearly miss him, right?"

"Well, yeah. But..."

"But what?"

"It's not that simple. It's really complicated, Abs."

"You are just making it complicated, dear cousin."

"No. You just don't understand. If he wanted to talk to me, to see me, he would. And I haven't heard from him in days. He even makes sure we aren't working the same shifts."

"How do you know that, Will? What if he is waiting to hear from you, but you are being too stubborn to call or talk to him? And what if it is just a coincidence that you guys aren't working together?"

"Because it's not."

"Just talk to him, Will. You will feel much better once you get some answers, even if they aren't what you want to hear."

"So, you think I'm right?" Will questions his cousin.

"Now I didn't say that."

"But you implied it."

"Just talk to him, Will!" Abby responds adamantly.

* * *

"Dude, just call him."

"Who?" Sonny asks, confused.

"The Pope," Chad retorts.

"Why would I need to call the Pope?"

"Don't play dumb, Sonny. Will. Call Will."

"No. He doesn't want to hear from me. He has made that pretty clear."

"How has he made that clear? He wanted to make it all up to you. That's what it said in the card he left for you, right?"

"Yeah. But he hasn't talked to me since then. What if he changed his mind? What if he and Brian are still together?"

"You won't know until you ask."

"Chad, you just don't understand."

"Maybe not. But what I do understand is that you have been moping around here for days and you are starting to depress me."

"Sorry to be such a downer," Sonny replies sarcastically.

"Dude, I hate seeing you this depressed. You just need to call him."

"I don't know, Chad. Don't you think he would let me know if he wanted to see me?"

"You haven't let him know that you want to see him, right?"

"Chad, it's not the same."

"Dude, just call him!"

* * *

Will lays awake for the sixth night in a row. Thinking of Sonny. Contemplating what he should do. If Abby was right and he should reach out to Sonny. But the doubts maintain their footing in his mind. And he can't stop every insecurity from surfacing again.

Will grabs his phone off the night stand and looks at it. He goes to Sonny's contact in his phone and stares at his picture. Like he has done for so many nights already. The picture just makes the ache feel a little bit deeper. And it doesn't help that Arianna keeps begging to see Sonny. This was his biggest fear. That Arianna would grow attached and then he would pull away. He never wanted his daughter to get in the crossfire of any of his relationships. But he did it with Sonny and now he is scared that his daughter's heart might get broken. Will understands being cold towards him, but not his daughter. He just doesn't understand what is going on with Sonny.

"Why doesn't he want to see me? To see us?" Will thinks out loud.

Will places his phone back on the night stand and tries to fall asleep. Again.

Then he hears the ding. The ding he has been praying for. Incoming message.

* * *

Sonny is playing out the conversation with Chad in his head. He wants to believe that Chad is right. But he still has this nagging feeling that Will doesn't want to talk with him. As much as he tries, he can't shake that feeling. But Sonny knows not seeing both of them is killing him. And Chad was right, his mood has been horrible. Sonny feels bad for all the people that have had to put up with his attitude and moping.

Sonny has done his best to avoid being around Will at work. It kills him to see Will and know that Will doesn't want to see him. When all Sonny wants to do is take him in his arms and never let him go. And fighting that urge has become harder by the day.

Sonny finds it weird how much he misses Will. How much he wants Will around him. That each day that passes and they don't talk, it just makes things worse. He has never felt like this about anyone he has ever dated. Actually, he has never felt this way about anyone period. And he doesn't understand this feeling. Will has become this need for him. He needs him in his life. And the more time that goes by that they don't talk, the more this need makes itself apparent.

Sonny decides he is done fighting the urge. He is done with the distance. He needs to know where Will's head is at. Because this silence is getting to be too much. He needs Will to know exactly how he feels.

Sonny picks up the phone and finally sends Will the message that he has fought sending all week.


	23. Chapter 23

**Because you guys are so awesome and absolutely patient with me, here is another update! I promise this one is angst-ridden like the last one! I hope you all enjoy it! And as always, thank you so much for all the kind words about this story and my writing. I adore you all! :)**

* * *

Will looks at his phone and sees Sonny's face pop up. He feels his heart start to race. He has been waiting to hear from Sonny for days and now he finally was. But he was also so nervous.

"What if he doesn't want to see me anymore? What if he doesn't even want to be friends?" Will asks himself, nervously.

All the negative connotations that could be in this message are running through Will's mind. And the excitement he felt a couple of seconds ago is now slowly dissipating, turning into fear and dread. Will isn't sure anymore that he wants to read what Sonny sent him. His fear of rejection is consuming him, yet again. All Will can do is stare at the picture of Sonny on his phone and try not to have a panic attack.

After several minutes of just looking at his phone, Will decides that he needs to see what Sonny wrote him. He feels he has mentally prepared himself enough for all worst case scenarios that could be in that message. Will takes a deep breath and finally opens the message.

_Hey. I've been thinking about you. You still owe me that date you promised. Hope to collect soon. Miss you and Arianna. -Sonny_

Will's heart stops. His breathing picks up. This was not the message he was expecting at all. And he couldn't be happier.

* * *

After Sonny hits send, his heart starts racing. He is nervous. He has no clue how Will is going to react to what he just sent.

As the seconds tick by, Sonny begins to regret sending it. He keeps looking at his phone hoping to get a response. But each minute that passes by, the fear and dread begin to rise. After staring at his phone for a couple of minutes he puts it down and tries to go to sleep. But he knows that isn't going to happen because he keeps waiting for that sound telling him that Will has replied.

Sonny lays back and stares at the ceiling. Trying to not think about that message or Will. But he knows that he is fighting a losing battle. And all he can think about is what an idiot he was for sending that message. Regret is beginning to consume him.

"I screwed everything up!" Sonny yells at himself.

Then he hears that familiar ding. Sonny pops up out of bed and grabs his phone. Takes a deep breath and sees what Will's reply was.

_Hey. I have been thinking about you a lot, too. Arianna won't stop talking about you. And I would love for you to collect on that date very soon. -Will_

Sonny exhales the breath he was holding. He can feel himself getting giddy and is so relieved that Will wasn't mad at him. Sonny can't believe that Will actually wants to still go on that date. This message was everything he wanted to hear and more. Sonny quickly replies back to Will.

* * *

Will sighs with relief after he sends the message to Sonny. He can't believe that he was so stubborn, like Abby had said. Sonny had missed him. Sonny had wanted to see him. But Will can't help but wonder what took him so long to get ahold of him. He decides to not dwell on that thought right now.

Will waits anxiously for Sonny's reply. He feels like a teenager again, waiting for his crush to talk to him. Will used to hate this feeling. The stomach in knots when around said crush, but with Sonny it was different. He has never felt more alive than right now. Waiting to hear from Sonny. Hoping to make plans for a date.

_Ding._ Will's phone goes off again with a message from Sonny. Will immediately checks what Sonny wrote.

_Glad to hear she won't stop talking about me. That's my kinda girl. I am ready to collect whenever you are. The sooner, the better for me. -Sonny_

Will's excitement level has hit overdrive. He can't wait to spend some quality time with Sonny. It has been awhile since they have spent time together, alone. Just talking. He hadn't really realized how much he missed it until now.

Will immediately replies back.

* * *

Sonny can't believe how well this is going. He could've sworn that Will no longer wanted to have anything to do with him. And now he sees just how wrong he was. Will has missed him just as much as he has missed Will. At least, that's what he thinks. Although, Will never did say that he missed Sonny. But Sonny is far too happy and excited to really dwell on that fact.

_Ding._

_Wow, that was fast,_ Sonny thinks to himself.

_Well, I am off tomorrow. Which you probably already knew that. And I don't have to work at the Pub either. But I have no one to watch Arianna. If you don't mind having her tag along with us, then we can have dinner tomorrow? I really miss you, Sonny. And so does Ari. -Will_

Sonny can't believe his luck. Not only will he get to see Will tomorrow, but he also gets to see the adorable Arianna. Nothing could knock Sonny off of his high right now. And he can't agree to this date fast enough.

Sonny sends his reply to Will and attempts to fall back asleep, but he knows that it will be a losing battle. But this time it will be for a very different reason. Sonny will be too excited to sleep. He is filled with anticipation for his date tomorrow night with Will and Arianna.

* * *

Will can't stop himself from smiling. He really hopes that Sonny agrees to this date tomorrow. It would mean so much to him. But he is pretty sure his daughter will be even more excited to see Sonny. She hasn't gotten to see him in a while and he is pretty much all she talks about.

_Ding._

_I would love nothing more. I can't wait. You can come pick me up at my place around 6? -Sonny_

Will immediately replies: _Absolutely! I can't wait! -Will_

Will lays his phone down and once his head hits the pillow he is out. He hasn't been able to sleep for a week thinking about Sonny. But now it's the complete opposite. Will will finally be able to get a great nights sleep, dreaming of his date with Sonny tomorrow.


	24. Chapter 24

"Sooooooooonny!" Arianna squeals as she races into Sonny's arms.

"Hey, sweetie!" Sonny exclaims as he picks the little girl up into his arms. "You look awfully pretty tonight. Do you have a date?"

Arianna giggles at Sonny's comment. "You!"

"Me?" Sonny feigns shock. "Now how did I get so lucky?"

"Hey," Will whispers to Sonny with a shy smile.

"Hey," Sonny whispers back. "You look amazing."

Will looks down towards the ground and blushes. Will is wearing a pair of tight, dark blue jeans that hug his so well. Sonny can't help checking him out in them. Will pairs the jeans with a light blue button down with the sleeves rolled up. Sonny doesn't think he has ever seen Will look as gorgeous as he does now.

Will lifts his head and whispers, "you don't look so bad yourself, Kirikias."

Sonny is wearing his "date jeans", as he refers to him. They are a dark blue, low rise that barely cover his very supple derriere. He matches his jeans with a button down white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. The shirt brings out the olive in his skin. Will doesn't think he has ever seen Sonny look this amazing before.

"By the way, you might get a little hot in that outfit tonight. You may want to bring a change of clothes. Just a suggestion," Will tells Sonny, teasingly.

"Interesting," Sonny replies with a smile. "Do I get a hint about what exactly will be making me all hot tonight?"

Will looks at his daughter in Sonny's arms and says,"Nope. That's our little secret. Right, baby girl?"

"Yup!" Arianna exclaims.

"Well, what would you suggest I bring?"

"Shorts and a t-shirt. You will thank me later."

"Will I?" Sonny laughs. "Did you bring a change of clothes, too?"

"Ahhh. You will have to wait and see."

Sonny sets down Ari and runs to his room to grab a change of clothes, curious about what is going to happen tonight. Sonny comes out into the living room where Ari and Will are waiting with a change of clothes in his hand. Once Arianna spots him, she races over to him. She lifts her arms up, asking to be held by Sonny. He lifts her up and saunters over to Will. Sonny then reaches out his free hand to Will.

"How about we get this date started?" Sonny asks.

"I would love that," Will replies, smiling.

Will and Sonny walk out of Sonny apartment with Arianna in Sonny's arms.

* * *

Will is nervously pacing the floor. He and Arianna are supposed to meet Sonny in a half hour. But his nerves were now starting to get the best of him. All doubts about Sonny and how he feels about them come rushing back furiously. And Will is trying to keeping them from flooding his thoughts, but he can't. He is going over all worst case scenarios in his head.

_What if Sonny really doesn't want to see me?_

_What if he just wants to see Arianna?_

_What if this date is horrible and he never wants to see me again?_

_What if this date is cringeworthily awkward?_

_What if I try to kiss him and he rejects me?_

_What if he tries to kiss me and I reject him?_

_What if he doesn't really want Arianna to come along and he is resentful all night?_

_What if he only sees me as a friend?_

_What if he wants more from me than I can give?_

"Daaaaaaddy!" Arianna yells, snapping Will out of his thoughts.

"Yes, sweetie?"

"Sonny?"

"Yes, sweetie. We are going to see Sonny."

"Pretty?"

"You want to look pretty for Sonny?"

Arianna nods her head enthusiastically.

"Well, what would you like to wear?"

"That one." Arianna points at this dark blue dress that has white polka dots all over it.

"Is this the one Sonny bought for you?"

"Yes! Pretty for Sonny!"

_"I want!" Arianna squeals as she sees this beautiful blue dress with polka dots all over it. "I want!"_

_"Arianna, you don't just demand things. Okay?" Will explains, sternly._

_"But daaaaddy," She pouts, obstinately. _

_"Oh, but she would look adorable in that, Will."_

_"Sonny," Will sighs. "You really aren't helping here."_

_"Sorry," he replies, sheepishly. "But she would."_

_"I know," Will says and quietly laughs. "You can try it on, sweetie. But no promises."_

_"Yaaaaaaaaaay! Thank you Sonny!" Arianna squeals. _

_Will, Sonny and Arianna head into the boutique. Sonny grabs the dress and hands it to Will, who takes Arianna into the dressing room to try the dress on. _

_Will looks at his daughter in awe. The dress brings her crystal blue eyes out. Sonny was right, she did look absolutely adorable. Arianna walks out of the dressing room to show Sonny the dress. She finds Sonny and does a twirl to show off her dress._

_"It's perfect, Will," Sonny whispers._

_"I know," Will replies quietly. "She looks beautiful, doesn't she?"_

_"Yes. Let me buy that for her. Please?"_

_"Sonny, I can't let you do that."_

_"But I want to."_

_Will sighs and nods his head. "This can be her early birthday present."_

_"When was her birthday?"_

_"Three months ago," Will replies, laughing. _

_"So it would be a late birthday present then?" Sonny teases._

_"Yeah. I guess so. How about you surprise her with the news."_

_"I would love to," Sonny smiles at Will. _

_"Baby girl. Sonny has a surprise for you."_

_Arianna's eyes light up. "Surise?"_

_"Yes," Sonny laughs. "How about we get you that dress?"_

_"Really?" She asks, excitedly. _

_"Yes," Sonny replies. _

_Arianna begins jumping up and down, then leaps into Sonny's arms. "Thank you Sonny. Love you."_

"I'm sure Sonny would love that."

Arianna beams with pride. "For Sonny. Daddy love Sonny."

"I know you do, baby girl."

"You love Sonny?" Arianna asks, inquisitively.

"We need to finish getting ready," Will replies, ignoring his daughter's question.

"Soooonny!" Arianna sings out with excitement.

Will is relieved that he is able to deter his daughter from the subject at hand. But the comment leads him back to his original thoughts and worries about tonight with Sonny.

After the last week without communication with Sonny, Will knows that he wants to be with him. But he fears that Sonny may not feel the same. Or that it may be too much to take on him and all that comes along with him. Will knows that Sonny loves Ari, but he isn't sure how Sonny feels about being with someone who has a daughter. That is a lot of responsibility to undertake. Brian couldn't truly take it, so what makes Will think that Sonny will be any different.

_Ok, Will. Stop deciding what your future with Sonny will be like when you aren't even sure if you have a present. You just need to get through tonight and see how things go from there. _He tells himself.

Will hopes that tonight goes pretty smoothly, but he has this feeling that it won't. Nothing about Sonny and Will's relationship has ever gone smoothly. So, what makes him think this night will be any different.

* * *

Sonny can't seem to keep still. He keeps checking his watch to see the time. Then he stands up and paces for a little bit. Then sits down, which then causes his leg to start to twitch. So, he gets up again and starts pacing. This has been the theme for the last 20 minutes as he waits for Will and Arianna to arrive.

Sonny can't believe how nervous he is about this date with Will. He has hoped this would happen for weeks now. And time seems to be crawling by so slowly. He can't wait to finally see Will. And he especially can't wait to spend some time with Will's absolutely adorable daughter. They make him happier than he could ever remember, which was driven home this last week. Not seeing or talking to Will has made him realize just how much he needs him in his life. And now he was hoping that Will felt the same way. That's what tonight was going to be all about. At least, that's what Sonny hoped.

After several more minutes of pacing and checking his watch, he finally hears the faint knock on his door. And then the loud shriek of his name. That sound made him happy and incredibly nervous.

Sonny looks at his watch one more time and then walks over to answer the door.

"Soooooonny!" Arianna shrieks and races into his arms.

Sonny immediately feels elated. He loves this little girl so much. He finds it strange that he could fall so in love with a child that he has absolutely no familial connection to. And to fall so hard for her so quickly. Sonny knows he would do anything he could to protect her. He also knows that he doesn't want to live a life without her in it.

Sonny also recognizes the dress that she has on. It is the dress he bought for her. And this makes his heart swell with happiness and love even more.

"Hey, sweetie!" Sonny exclaims as he picks the little girl up into his arms. "You look awfully pretty tonight. Do you have a date?"

Arianna giggles at Sonny's comment. "You!"

"Me?" Sonny feigns shock. "Now how did I get so lucky?"

"Hey," Will whispers to Sonny with a shy smile.

Sonny feels his heart pick up pace. He's looking directly into Will's crystal blue eyes and he feels like he is going to melt. He has missed those eyes and how they express everything that Will is thinking and feeling.

"Hey," Sonny whispers back. "You look amazing."

Will looks down towards the ground and blushes. He then lifts his head and whispers, "you don't look so bad yourself, Kirikias."

"By the way, you might get a little hot in that outfit tonight. You may want to bring a change of clothes. Just a suggestion," Will tells Sonny, teasingly.

"Interesting," Sonny replies with a smile. "Do I get a hint about what exactly will be making me all hot tonight?"

Will looks at his daughter in Sonny's arms and says,"Nope. That's our little secret. Right, baby girl?"

"Yup!" Arianna exclaims.

"Well, what would you suggest I bring?"

"Shorts and a t-shirt. You will thank me later."

"Will I?" Sonny laughs. "Did you bring a change of clothes, too?"

"Ahhh. You will have to wait and see."

Sonny sets down Ari and runs to his room to grab a change of clothes. Sonny comes out into the living room where Ari and Will are waiting with a change of clothes in his hand. Once Arianna spots him, she races over to him. She lifts her arms up, asking to be held by Sonny. He lifts her up and saunters over to Will. Sonny then reaches out his free hand to Will.

"How about we get this date started?"

Sonny has no clue what is in store for him tonight. All he knows is he gets to spend it with the most amazing people he knows. And that whatever tonight has in store for him, he is more than ready for it.

"I would love that." Will replies taking hold of Sonny's offered hand.

Will and Sonny walk out of Sonny's apartment hand in hand with Arianna in Sonny's arms.


	25. Chapter 25

**Thank you all for being so patient with me and this story! We have finally arrived at their first date. It's about time, right? Which also means that we will be getting a Wilson kiss very soon! I promise! So enjoy! And thank you all for being so awesome and loving this story as much as I do! :)**

* * *

"Where exactly are you taking me?" Sonny asks as they get into the car.

"Ahh! That's a surprise. Right, baby girl?"

"Yup!" Arianna quips from the backseat.

"Today was actually all of Arianna's doing," Will remarks proudly.

"Really?"

"Yup!" Arianna quips from the backseat. "Date wif Sonny!"

"Should I be excited or scared?" Sonny whispers to Will, smiling.

"Maybe a little bit of both."

"So, what is your plan Ms. Ari?" Sonny asks.

"Nope. Surise!" Arianna replies happily.

"You should have expected that answer, Sonny," Will laughs.

"Yeah. I know. But I thought she would give me some information."

"Not this girl. She's good with a secret."

Arianna keeps a steady flow of talking the entire car ride. Sonny is fairly certain she barely had time to take a breath. She is filling Sonny in on everything he has missed in the last week, which really isn't much.

Sonny smiles at Arianna's constant talking. He looks over at Will and sees the smile plastered on his face. Sonny is just basking in the glow of being with Will and Arianna. Although he is fairly nervous about what kind of date a three-year old would plan.

Will keeps looking in the mirror to watch his daughter. She keep clamoring on about what she has done every single day for the past week, at least what she can remember of it. Every once in a while Sonny gives him a look that means he needs clarification on what she is referring to. Will is actually pretty impressed on how much he does understand what Ari is saying. Even Gabi has a difficult time trying to understand what Ari is trying to tell her most of the time.

"Heeeeere!" Arianna screeches as Will slows down to find a parking spot.

"Where are we?"

"The Gymboree," Will replies.

Sonny gives Will a quizzical look and asks, "Gymboree?"

"Yaaaaaaay!" Arianna squeals from the back. "Ymbree!"

"This is where she requested we take you."

"Why exactly?" Sonny laughs.

"Baby girl, would you like to answer Sonny's question?"

"Play wif Sonny!"

"So, we are on a playdate?" Sonny asks Will.

"That is what her idea of a date is," Will laughs. "It's the only kind of date she has ever been on. And I hope to keep it that way for a very long time.

"Oh, I don't blame you," Sonny laughs. "Does this mean we are officially on a date, Arianna?" Sonny asks.

"Yes!" Arianna yells at Sonny as Will is attempting to get her out of her car seat.

"Ari, can you sit still for Daddy? You are making it very hard for me to get you out of your seat."

Arianna stops thrashing around until Will can get her out of the car. Then she runs over to Sonny and grabs his arm. Arianna begins tugging on his arms to get him to move toward the building.

"Let's goooo!" Arianna huffs, continuing to tug on Sonny's arm.

"You grabbed your change of clothes, right? Because you are definitely going to need them."

Sonny goes back to the car, with Arianna in tow, to get the clothes Will told him to bring along. Then Will grabs Arianna's free hand and they all walk toward the building together.

Sonny has never been to a Gymboree, so he has no idea what to expect. He walks into a huge room filled with brightly colored mats. And slides. And tunnels. And other items that he has never seen before. He is amazed as he looks around at all the kids running, jumping, and playing. Sonny feels Ari's hand wiggling, trying to release his grip so she can go play.

"Let's put our stuff up, Ari. Then you can go play."

Arianna pulls her jacket off then plops down on the floor to slip her shoes off. Will brought a pair of shorts for Ari to slip on. It was the deal if she wanted to wear that dress tonight. She begrudgingly obliged.

"Now do you see why I told you to bring the change of clothes? There's a bathroom back that way for you to go change."

"And where are your changes of clothes?"

"Well, you see. This is your date. Not mine."

"Oh, you play dirty."

Will gives Sonny a look on innocence as he heads off to the bathroom to change. Will watches Sonny saunter forward and he is very much appreciating his view. A couple of minutes later, Sonny comes out of the bathroom in his change of clothes. It takes Will's breath away just seeing him in those black shorts that hit him right above the knee and white T-shirt that cling to his muscles gloriously. Will thinks Sonny looks absolutely sexy walking towards them.

"Ready?" Arianna asks, impatiently.

"Let me just pull your hair back then you can go."

Will grabs a scrunchie from his back pocket and attempts to make a ponytail with Arianna's hair. Sonny is pretty sure that Arianna could make a better attempt at a ponytail than Will did. Sonny just laughs at the concentrated face Will is making while attempting this feat.

"What? Do you think you could do a better job?" Will huffs.

"I think Ari could do a better job," Sonny laughs. "Shouldn't you be better at these girly things with two little sisters?"

"I never had to do their hair," Will pouts.

"Let me try?"

Will hands the scrunchie over to Sonny. Sonny realizes why Will was having such a hard time. Arianna refused to stay still. But Sonny is able to pull all her hair out of her face and pile it all on top of her head.

"How's this?"

"Not too bad," Will replies. "For your first time."

"Play?" Arianna asks.

"Yes. You can go play now."

"Lets go Sonny!"

"What am I supposed to do?" Sonny asks Will.

"Oh, she will direct you!"

"Oh," Sonny replies, worriedly. "You're really not going to come?"

"No," Will replies, sweetly. "This is your date remember."

"Oh, I am totally going to get you back for this, Horton."

"I'm counting on it," Will smiles at Sonny.

Sonny can feel little hands tugging at his shirt.

"Coooome on Sonny!"

Will smiles and shrugs his shoulders at Sonny, who is dragged off by Ari. Sonny has this look of utter fear and Will can't help but laugh at him.

"You have no clue what you are in for," Will mouths to Sonny.

Will finds a seat where he can keep an eye on his daughter and Sonny. This isn't exactly your typical first date, but Will is loving it nonetheless.

An hour and a half later, Sonny stumbles over to Will with exhaustion apparent on his face and slightly out of breath. Will looks up at him and sets the book he has been reading down.

"How do you do it?" Sonny asks, breathlessly.

"Having fun with Ari?" Will laughs.

"How does she have so much energy?"

Will stands up and offers his seat to Sonny. "You look like you could use some rest."

Arianna comes skipping behind Sonny towards her father. "Coooome daddy!"

"I think it is about time we leave, baby girl."

"But daaaaaddy!" Arianna whines.

"Sweetie. It's getting late. Plus isn't there somewhere else you wanted to take Sonny?"

Arianna's eyes light up and she begins nodding her head. Sonny eyes widen with fear. He isn't quite sure he can take much more activity after that.

"What else did you have in mind?" Sonny whispers.

"Surise!" She squeals.

Will grabs both jackets and pairs of shoes and brings them over to the two. "Let's get ready so we can go."

Sonny and Arianna slip on their shoes and jackets. Will offers his hand to Sonny to help get him up while Arianna pops up off the ground.

"Lets gooooo!"

Will grabs his daughter's hand before she can go racing off towards the car and then the two walk towards the car together. Will keeps looking over his shoulder to make sure that Sonny is following behind. By the time Will has his daughter strapped in, Sonny makes it to the car. Will walks over to Sonny and opens his door for him.

"You look exhausted," Will whispers.

"I am," Sonny sighs.

"We can take you back home, if you want. I know you worked earlier. I guess this wasn't such a good idea. I'm sorry."

"No," Sonny whispers and grabs Will's hand. "I don't want this night to end."

Will looks Sonny in the eyes and smiles,"me neither."

Sonny climbs into the car, keeping his eyes locked on Will. Once inside, Will shuts the door and races over to his side of the car so that they can go to the next part of the date.

When Will gets into the car, Sonny looks over at him and smiles. Will grabs his hand and holds it until they reach their next destination.

"Heeeeeere!" Arianna gleefully yells when they arrive.

Sonny smiles at Will when he sees where they are, remembering the first time they came here.

"The ice cream shop," Sonny smiles.

"Yup!" Arianna says.

"This was the first place we all were together, outside of the coffee shop."

"And this is where Ari wanted to go?"

"Yeah. She loves ice cream."

"Well, who doesn't?"

"Ice creeeeem!" Arianna yells out as Will is getting her out of the car.

"How does she still have so much energy?" Sonny asks Will.

"Oh, don't worry. She is bound to collapse any time now."

"Am not!"

The threesome walk into the ice cream shop and order the exact same thing as the first time they came here. They even sit at the exact same table as before. But this time Ari climbs up on Sonny's lap to eat her ice cream. Will pulls out his phone to take a picture of this moment.

"Really?" Sonny asks.

"You have no idea how adorable you two look right now."

"I would probably have to say adorable is not the word I would use to describe myself at the moment."

"I would," Will whispers. "You always look amazing. Isn't that right, sweetie?"

"Sonny pretty!" Arianna exclaims.

Sonny can feel himself starting to blush at their words. Then attempts to change the subject. "Was I a good date tonight, Ari?"

"Bestest!" She exclaims with a mouth full of ice cream.

Will grabs a napkin and wipes himself and his daughter off after she spewed ice cream across the table. "What have we talked about?" Will asks sternly.

"Sowy," Arianna replies sheepishly, looking down at the table.

Sonny smiles at the interaction between father and daughter. Will looks at Sonny and rolls his eyes.

"We have been working on manners. Haven't we, Arianna?"

"Yup!" Arianna replies, looking up and smiling at her father.

"Clearly, we still have some work to do," Will retorts. "Are you almost done with that ice cream, baby girl?"

"Ya."

"Okay once you are all done, then we will head home."

"Nooooooo!" Arianna screams.

Sonny becomes startled after the loud scream and jumps, which causes Will to begin laughing hysterically. Arianna looks at her father with confusion and stops screaming. She then begins to pout.

"No!" She says stubbornly.

Once Will is able to control the laughter and can put on his serious face, he says,"you have to go to bed. And Sonny needs to go home."

"Nope!"

"Do not argue with me, Arianna."

"No Sonny leave."

Sonny looks over at Will and mouths,"It's okay. I don't need to go home."

Will nods his head in acknowledgment of what Sonny just said and smiles. Then he turns his attention back to Arianna and says,"Are you all done?"

"Yeah," Arianna whispers sadly.

"Maybe if you ask nicely enough, Sonny will come back with us and tuck you in."

Arianna turns around and looks at Sonny with hopeful eyes. "Will you? Tuck in? Pwease!"

Sonny laughs at the little girls enthusiasm and says, "Anything for you."


	26. Chapter 26

Sonny walks up the steps behind Will to his apartment. Arianna is asleep in Sonny's arms. She is curled into his body with her arms loosely encircling his neck. Sonny loves the feeling of Arianna asleep in his arms. He loves that fact that she can feel safe enough to fall asleep there. Or in this case, stay asleep there. Will looks back at the two and can't help but feel completely elated. This is what he was missing with Brian. This is what he has yearned for and he didn't even know it. He's wanted someone in his life that adored Arianna and that Arianna adored in return. And he has finally found that person in Sonny. A part of him is scared, but he is far too happy to let that feeling really sink in.

Will lets Sonny into his apartment and they head straight to Arianna's bedroom. Sonny remembers the routine from a couple of weeks ago. Lay Arianna down on the bed. Grab her Snoopy pajamas. Will strips her clothes off and Sonny helps him put her pajamas on. Sonny cradles Arianna in his arms as Will pulls the covers back. Sonny places Arianna in the bed and Will tucks her in. Even though this is only the second time that they have done this routine, it is seamless. It's like they have done it so many times before.

"Kisses," Arianna whispers.

"I thought you were asleep," Will asks, mockingly.

"Kisses," she coos.

Will places a soft kiss on Arianna's forehead and whispers,"I love you, baby girl. Sweet dreams."

Will looks over to Sonny and nods his head, indicating that it is his turn. Will knows Ari won't go to sleep without good night kisses from Sonny. She has asked for them for a week now. Actually, it's been more like begging. She has begged Will to have Sonny help tuck her in. And tonight all that begging has finally paid off.

Sonny kneels down next to the bed and places a soft kiss on one cheek. "Good night, sweetie."

"Love you," Arianna whispers, sweetly.

Sonny looks up at Will, awestruck. Will smiles back at Sonny. Sonny then looks back at Arianna and strokes her hair. "I love you, too, sweetie."

"Night," Arianna sighs with a smile.

Sonny stands up and walks over to Will. Will reaches out his hand and Sonny latches on. They walk to the door, then turn around and watch the little girl sleep. Will reaches to turn out the light and Sonny closes the door behind them, leaving it cracked slightly open. They walk back into the living room, hand in hand.

"Do you want anything to drink or eat?" Will asks.

"I am kind of hungry."

"Oh, I'm sorry! We should have went to dinner first."

"It's okay. But do you have anything here to eat?"

"Yeah. Hold on."

Will goes into his kitchen, scrambling to find something for Sonny. He needed to go grocery shopping, so there isn't much there. He has some leftover chicken and rice or Ari's snacks for him to eat.

"How does chicken and rice sound? It's leftover from last night. Unless you want some animal crackers. I'm sure Ari wouldn't mind sharing," Will teases.

"Chicken and rice sounds amazing."

"Okay, give me a couple of minutes and it will be done. Did you want anything to drink?"

"Whatever you have is fine."

* * *

After Will and Sonny share the leftovers and the dishes are all cleaned, they sit down on the couch. Sonny lays his head back and sighs.

"Do you want me to take you home?" Will asks. "You must be exhausted."

"I am. But I don't want to leave," Sonny whispers, sitting his head up and looking into Will's eyes.

"I don't want you to either," Will whispers back, looking at Sonny. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you, too. So much. The both of you."

"Did you have fun tonight?" Will asks, concerned. "I know it isn't what you expected. Or probably wanted for a date."

"No. I had a great time. Anytime I can spend with you and Ari is perfect for me. But was this a date?"

"I thought so," Will replies, sadly. "Unless you don't want it to be. You didn't want this to be a date, did you? Nevermind. It doesn't have to be a date. It's okay."

"Will," Sonny laughs, grabbing Will's arm.

Will interjects,"Oh, god. What about Neil? Shit. You guys are still together, aren't you? And here I'm thinking-"

"Stop," Sonny interrupts. "Me and Neil broke up. He said that he and, uh. It doesn't matter. I am done with him. We are done, okay?"

Will perks up and smiles,"Really?"

"Yeah," Sonny nods. "But what about you and Brian? Are you guys still together?"

"Brian?" Will asks. "We broke up awhile ago. He said I have chosen you over him too many times. That he was done playing second fiddle to you and Ari."

"So he broke up with you?" Sonny questions, sadly.

"Yeah. But Sonny, it's not like that. I went over there to end things, but he just kind of beat me to the punch."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. We both knew it had been over for a while, but neither of us wanted to say it."

"Oh."

"This isn't going very well," Will sighs.

"Will, I told you I wanted you. And then I broke up with Neil."

"You did?"

"Yes. Now I need to know if you feel the same way. Did we go out on a date or were we just hanging out? I need to know if you see us being more than just friends. Because that's what I want. I don't want to be just your friend. I don't know if I can be just your friend, honestly."

"Sonny, how can you not know how I feel?"

"Because you have never told me," Sonny replies, aggravated. "I've been hoping that you feel the same. Because I want you, Will. Honestly, I've probably wanted you since the first time I laid eyes on you. But I was too scared to admit that to myself. Why do you think I was willing to work so hard to accommodate you? To help you take care of Ari?"

"I just thought you were being an awesome boss..." Will trails off.

"Well, there is that." Sonny smiles.

"I want you to be a part of my life. My daughter's life."

"Oh," Sonny whispers and looks down. "I get it."

"Wait. No. Sonny that's not what I meant," Will tries explaining, frantically.

"No. I get it. I should probably get going anyways."

Sonny stands up and heads to the door. Will hops up and chases after him.

"No. You don't get it," Will says as he grabs Sonny by the arm, pulling Sonny to a stop right in front of the door. "You don't get it at all."

Will pulls Sonny to him, so that they are now chest to chest. Brown eyes meeting blue eyes with intensity. Sonny can feel the tickling of Will's breath on his face. Sonny's breathing begins to pick up and his heart starts to race at being in such close proximity to Will. Will clutches the back of Sonny's shirt tightly in his hand.

"You really don't get it," Will whispers looking Sonny deeply in the eyes.

Sonny stares back at Will with lust-filled eyes. Hoping that this is heading where he wants it to go. Where he's been wanting it to go for a while now. Will slowly leans into Sonny and places a soft kiss on his lips. It takes Sonny a second to realize that Will is actually kissing him. That this isn't a dream. That this is finally happening.

Sonny's hands move up Will's body, grabbing the back of Will's head returning the kiss and trying to increase the pressure between their lips. Sonny feels Will's lips latching on to his, sucking slightly on his bottom lip. Will can feel Sonny's tongue starting to lightly lick at his bottom lip, begging for entry. Will opens his mouth to let Sonny's tongue join with his. Will pushes Sonny back the couple of feet towards the door and pushes him up against it. Will's hands are roaming Sonny's body and Sonny's are all over Will's. They are exploring every inch, every curve, every muscle that they have longed to touch for months as their tongues caress each other. Their bodies have been aching for this. Will lets out a soft moan leading Sonny to almost lose it. The vibrations from Will's sound reverberates through Sonny. Making every pore feel electrified. Will's hand move to the back of Sonny's head and he grabs at his hair, hoping to latch on to anything that will ground him as the two groan in unison.

There is a desperation in their movements. A deep need for each other in every touch that neither knew truly existed until this very moment. Until this very kiss. Each wanting to delve in deeper. Not wanting to let go of this moment. Of this feeling. Holding on to each other for dear life. Both of them know that they have never felt anything like this before. Their bodies feel more stimulated than they ever have before. Every touch, every sound is taking them farther and deeper than they have ever gone before.

Will pulls back from Sonny after a couple of minutes and places his forehead against Sonny's, trying to catch his breath. Will can hear Sonny groan in discontentment as he pulls away. They both have their eyes closed, arms wrapped around each other, foreheads resting together, panting.

"I want you, too," Will whispers, breathlessly. "I've wanted this for so long."


	27. Chapter 27

**Hey guys! This will be my only update this week. Sorry. But I hope you all enjoyed all the updates last week. I will be spending the weekend in Chicago, so I will not have much time to write/update. But I will do some more when I get back. And if anyone else will be at the event in Chicago this weekend, let me know and maybe we can meet up! **

**On a side note, this story will be wrapping up in the next few chapters. I wanted this story to only be about Will and Sonny meeting and getting together. But a few people have expressed interest in a possible sequel to this story. I will leave it up to all of you if that is something that you would want me to do. **

**As always, thank you so much for all the reviews and love that you have shown. It really means a lot that you guys love this story. **

* * *

"Sooooooonny!"

Sonny groans as he hears someone calling out his name. He's not sure why someone would be coming to see him this early in the morning, especially on his day off. He cracks open his eyes and realizes he's not in his bed. And this is not his apartment. It takes Sonny a second to figure out where he is at. Then it all comes flooding back to him. Sonny smiles at the memories of last night.

His date with Will and Arianna. He realizes he never made it home, which explains the stiff neck and the backache. Not like he is complaining or anything. Because last night was amazing. It was everything he had hoped it would be and more. A part of him still feels like it was all a dream. But last night was better than any of his dreams.

But now Arianna is screaming his name. Then giggling. Then screaming his name again. Not the most ideal way to wake up.

"Arianna," Will whispers to his daughter. "Leave him alone. Let him sleep."

"Why here, daddy?"

"Uh. He was too tired to make it home last night. That's why he was sleeping here."

"You sleep on couch."

Will usually doesn't mind his daughter's inquisitive nature, but now is not one of those times. He isn't sure how to answer this question or what to even tell her.

Will remembers last night with a smile. He and Sonny falling asleep on the couch after a lot of talking and even more kissing. Will licks his chapped lips, savoring the memory of Sonny's lips on his all night long. His daughter didn't need to know all the details of what happened after she went to bed and the real reason that Sonny was still here this morning. Although, she did catch them cuddled up together on the couch this morning. Sonny's head was resting on Will's chest and Will's arm was draped around Sonny's shoulder.

"Uh. Yeah. We fell asleep watching tv. Now go wash your hands, so you can eat."

"TV off?"

_Crap_, Will thinks to himself. It's moments like this that Will wishes his daughter wasn't so smart and observant.

"What's with all the questions this morning, sweetie?"

Arianna shrugs her shoulders and asks, "Sonny eat breakfast?"

"Yes. When he wakes up, he can have breakfast. Now go, missy!"

Before Arianna scampers off to the bathroom, she checks in on Sonny again. She decides to crawl up on to his lap and poke him, which causes him to flutter his eyes open, again. Sonny was actually listening to the whole conversation between Will and his daughter. He just thought they were absolutely adorable together. And he didn't want to interrupt their conversation.

"You wake?" Arianna asks, wide-eyed.

Sonny nods his head and whispers, groggy,"yeah."

"Daaaaaaaddy!" Arianna yells out. "Sonny wake!"

"Arianna, what did I tell you about bothering him?" Will asks, adamantly.

"Sorry," she whispers, eyes downcast.

"Did she wake you? I'm so sorry."

"No, it's okay. It was getting late anyways."

Sonny looks at his watch to see the time. "It's 6:30? Really?"

"Yeah. Sorry. She's an early riser," Will laughs.

"Apparently. I try not to see this time of day when I'm off."

"Yeah. Sorry about that again. We are about to have breakfast. Would you like to join us?"

"Absolutely! What's on the menu?"

"Scrambled eggs, french toast, and bacon."

"Wow. What a feast!"

"It's Arianna's favorite. And since today is her last day here..." Will trails off.

"Last day? Is Gabi coming back?"

"Yeah," Will replies, sadly. "She will be back in the morning. She will be here first thing tomorrow to take her back home."

"Oh, did you want to spend the day alone with her? I can leave."

"No," Will whispers, grabbing Sonny's arm. "Don't leave. Please. I want you here. Ari wants you here."

Sonny smiles at Will and replies,"good. I didn't really want to leave anyways."

"All done!" Arianna exclaims, running into the kitchen.

Will picks her up and places her in her booster seat. Then he starts preparing everyone's plates. They all sit down and eat, then begin discussing their plans for the day.

"What would you like to do today, sweetie?"

"Zoooooo!"

Will laughs and looks over at Sonny,"She's been begging me to take her to the zoo for weeks now. Actually, she's been begging me to get you to come with us to the zoo, to be more exact."

"Oh, really?" Sonny asks with a twinkle in his eyes. "You want to take me to the zoo, Ari?"

"Yup!" Arianna nods her head. "Show you elfants, panas, and fishies."

"Oh. Well, I would love for you to show them to me!" Sonny smiles at Arianna.

Sonny looks over at Will and whispers,"Does she know?"

Will shakes his head and whispers,"no. I have to tell her today. Last time didn't go so well."

"Are you using me as a decoy?" Sonny teases.

"Maybe," Will says, sheepishly. "Do you mind?"

"If it means I get to spend the day with you two, then I don't mind at all."

Will diverts his attention back to his daughter. "Okay, how's breakfast, Ari?"

"Fabrites!"

"I know they're your favorites. It's going to be a daddy/Ari day. Do you mind if Sonny joins in on the fun?"

"Yaaaaaaaaaaaay!"

"I will take that as a yes," Will laughs.

* * *

After everyone is showered and dressed, they leave to go to the zoo. Will offered Sonny his shower and clothes for the day instead of taking Sonny home so he could do all that there. The three of them arrive at the zoo and the weather is absolutely perfect. Ari had picked out a bright pink sundress with matching shoes. Since Sonny is more capable of doing little girls hair than Will, Sonny fixed Ari's hair for her. Both boys had picked out t-shirts and shorts to wear, since they were going to be outside all day.

Will couldn't help staring at Sonny in his clothes. There was something so incredibly sexy about seeing Sonny in them. How the material of his dark blue T-shirt clung to Sonny in all the right places. And how Sonny's ass looked so enticing in his black shorts. If Arianna wasn't around, Will would've absolutely pushed Sonny up against the wall and have a repeat performance of last night.

* * *

Arianna is singing in the backseat as they pull into the parking lot. She can barely contain her excitement as Will gets her out of her car seat. She almost races off when Sonny grabs her. She impatiently waits for her dad to catch up to them, a few feet away from the car. When Will meets up to them, Arianna grabs both Sonny and Will's hand, so that she is in the middle of the two.

"Where to first?" Sonny asks

"Elfants!" Arianna shrieks.

"They are her favorite animal of the moment," Will laughs.

The three of them head towards the elephants. Neither says much, they just bask in the glow of the day. Spending all this time together without the guilt of their boyfriends, like they had all the other times they spent the day together. Today was completely different than those days. They were filled with angst and tension and longing for the other guy. Neither would say what they really wanted to say. But today was different. Today they were free to finally be them. To finally do exactly what they wanted to do. To finally enjoy each others company to the fullest. And it was the best either of them have felt in awhile.

Will looks over at Sonny and smiles at him. Today, in this moment, everything feels perfect. And he feels so lucky.

* * *

As the day progresses and Arianna's energy dwindles, Will and Sonny share the duty of carrying her around the zoo. She refuses to go home until she sees everything, even though she can barely keep her eyes open by mid afternoon. After lunch, she was pretty much done. Anytime Will or Sonny mentioned going home, she would perk up slightly and refuse. Around two o'clock, she was absolutely dead to the world. Sonny carried her to the car, as she rested her head on his shoulder and her legs wrapped tightly around him. He gently put her into her car seat and Will drove them back to the apartment.

Halfway through the drive, Sonny reaches out and grabs Will's hand. They continue the rest of the way home, hand in hand.

When they arrive back at Will's apartment, he goes to unlock the apartment as Sonny grabs Arianna from the back of the car. She is still out cold, but when she feels Sonny pick her up she hums with content. She curls into him, like she has done so many times before. Sonny is amazed at how happy this feeling makes him. He loves having Arianna in his arms more than he ever thought was possible.

After they put Arianna into her bed for her nap, Sonny and Will head into the living room. Sonny plops down next to Will on the couch, grabbing Will's hand and resting his head on Will's shoulder.

"Tired?" Will asks Sonny.

"I think I am beyond tired, honestly. What else did you have planned for her today?"

"Well, I was hoping she would crash for awhile, so I could take a nap," Will laughs.

"I am absolutely up for a nap. After our late night last night and way too early wake up call, I'm exhausted."

"I know. I am so sorry about that," Will whispers, giving Sonny a chaste kiss on the lips. "Come here."

Will pulls Sonny down onto his lap. Sonny's head resting on Will's legs, as Will cards his fingers through his hair. "How about we try to sleep for a little bit before my daughter wakes up?"

"That sounds amazing," Sonny smiles at Will.

Within a matter of minutes, both Will and Sonny are asleep on the couch.


	28. Chapter 28

**I am so sorry that it has taken me so long to update. And for those of you who kept bugging me, it finally is here! :) I am back in school, so the updates won't be as frequent anymore. I apologize in advance for that. I will do my best to post weekly like I have before, but I offer no promises. As always, thank you all for being so amazing and continuing to read this story. There are only a couple of chapters left, so enjoy! :) **

* * *

Sonny wakes up before anyone else. He gently lifts himself from Will's lap and decides to check in on Arianna. He finds her quietly playing in her room.

"What are you doing?" Sonny whispers.

"Play dolls. You play?" Arianna asks, holding up one of her dolls.

"Sure. How do we play this?"

Arianna giggles at Sonny's question. "This Lily. She my fabrite."

"You are letting me have your favorite doll?" Sonny asks, smiling.

Arianna nods her head enthusiastically and points at Sonny. "My fabrite!"

"I'm your favorite?" Sonny asks, confused.

Arianna again nods her head enthusiastically.

"Shhhh. Don't tell your dad that," Sonny says with a finger to his lips.

This makes Arianna giggle some more. "Lily get ready."

"Oh, where is she going? Somewhere fancy?"

"See mom."

"She's going home?"

Arianna shakes her head no. "Stays wif mom. Wanna live wif daddy."

"Why can't she live with her dad?"

"No know. Mommy says so."

"Well, what does her dad say?"

"Stay wif mommy."

"Oh." Sonny is beginning to see where this is going. "Does Lily like living with her mom?"

Arianna shakes her head no, again. "Loves mommy. Wanna stay wif daddy."

"Does daddy want Lily to stay with him?"

Arianna slowly nods her head and whispers,"Mommy say no."

Sonny is trying to keep his voice steady, but he knows that Arianna knows that she is going back with Gabi soon. And his heart is breaking not only for this little girl, but also for her father. Sonny lays the doll gently on the ground and opens his arms. Arianna drops the other dolls and runs into his awaiting arms. She begins crying into Sonny's shoulder, while he just holds on tight. She wraps her arms tightly around his neck, sobbing into his shirt. Sonny is unsure of what exactly he should be doing. So he just lets her cry, as he begins stroking her hair and whispering soothing words in her ear.

Sonny looks up and sees Will standing in the doorway, rubbing sleep from his eyes. Will quietly walks over to where Sonny and Arianna are on the floor, giving them a quizzical look.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" Will asks kneeling beside the two.

"We were playing dolls. And Lily has to go back to her mom's house, but she wants to stay with her daddy." Sonny fills Will in on what happened before he woke up.

"Oh," Will whispers.

Arianna peeks her head out from Sonny's shoulder and looks at her father. Will gives his daughter a weak smile.

"Come here, baby girl," Will whispers.

Sonny hands Arianna off to Will, then stands up to leave so they can have some alone time. Sonny stands at the door watching them and feeling his heart break for the two people who have stolen his heart.

"Do you want to tell me what's wrong?" Will asks his daughter.

"No wanna go," Arianna sobs out.

"You don't want to go where, sweetie?"

"Wanna stay wif you and Sonny."

"How did you know your mom was coming back?"

"Hear you say Sonny."

"Oh, you heard that?" Will whispers, hurt consuming him.

Arianna nods her head. "Wanna stay, Daddy."

"I know you do, baby girl. I want you to stay, too. But your mom misses you terribly. Don't you want to see her?"

Arianna nods her head again. "Miss mommy. Live wif you."

"I know you do, sweetie. I know you do," Will whispers as he rocks his daughter in his arms.

* * *

Everything that Will had originally planned for the day was now no longer an option. He knew what his daughter needed and wanted was just to be with him. For the rest of the day, Arianna refused to leave Will's side. She followed him every where he went. And when he went to the couch, she would crawl on to his lap and snuggle. She just wanted to be in his arms, because that's where she felt safest.

Sonny decided he would make them all dinner, so they wouldn't have to leave the house. And after he was done with dinner, Sonny decided it was best for him to leave. He knew that Will and Arianna needed this time together.

"Since everything is all cleaned up, I think I will head home," Sonny says to Will.

Will comes up behind Sonny and wraps his arms around Sonny's waist, resting his chin on his shoulder. "You don't have to leave, Sonny. You can stay with us and watch a movie."

Sonny turns around in Will's arms and rests his hands on Will's shoulders. "No. You and Ari need this time together before she goes back with Gabi. We have plenty of time to have movie nights in the future."

"Okay," Will says sadly. "I guess you're right."

"I know how hard this is for you. So call me if you need anything and I will be right over. Okay?"

Will nods his head and then calls over to his daughter, "Ari, come say goodbye to Sonny."

Arianna has fallen asleep on the couch. Will walks over to the couch and sees his daughter curled up in Sonny's jacket, asleep. He decides it would be best not to bother her. Will instead pulls Sonny outside to say goodbye to him.

Will closes the door gently behind him, leaving it cracked slightly open so he can hear if Arianna wakes up.

"You really don't have to leave, Sonny," Will states, sadly.

"Yes, I do," Sonny whispers, cupping Will's face with his hands and gently stroking Will's cheeks with his thumbs.

Will leans forward placing his head on Sonny's forehead, closing his eyes and sighs,"I don't want her to leave tomorrow."

Sonny pulls Will to him, hugging him tightly and whispers, "I know you don't, Will. I know you don't."

"What am I going to do without her here?" Will asks, trying to hold back his tears. "I've gotten so used to her being around all the time."

"I know. And she has gotten used to being around you all the time. But I'm sure we can figure something out," Sonny winks, trying to make Will smile.

"Sonny," Will smiles. "You can't already be starting with that already."

"Oh, I can."

"Thank you," Will whispers, combing his fingers through Sonny's hair.

"For what?"

"For everything, really. For loving my daughter. For being my friend. I don't know what I would do right now without you."

"Lucky for you, you won't have to figure that out," Sonny whispers, inching his face closer to Will's.

Will tightens his grip on Sonny's hair, as Sonny's lips meet Will's. They meet in a gentle caress. Will sighs into Sonny's mouth as he deepens the kiss. Sonny pushes Will up against the wall next to the door and then grabbing on to Will's shirt to help steady him. The gentleness is quickly replaced with roughness. There is a deep need for more, as Will's hands embed themselves into Sonny tightly. As Will's lips attack Sonny's mouth with a fury and his nails dig into Sonny's skin, leaving behind crescent shaped indentation. Sonny moans out needing more contact when they hear a scream from inside the apartment.

"Daaaaaaddy!"

Will quickly breaks away from Sonny, receiving an involuntary groan from the latter.

"Sorry," Will whispers and goes inside to check on his daughter.

"Daaaaaaaddy!" Arianna shrieks out again.

"I'm right here, baby girl," Will breathes out as he gets closer to his daughter. "I'm right here."

Will picks up his daughter as she begins crying. Arianna grabs ahold of her father's neck and holds on tightly, nuzzling her face into his neck.

"What's wrong, sweetie? Were you having one of your nightmares?"

All Arianna can do is nod her head as she continues sobbing. Will wishes he could do something to make all these nightmares go away. He thought they had gotten better. And they seemed to have lessened since she had been staying with him.

"Don't worry, baby girl. Daddy's got you. Nothing will ever happen to you, okay?"

Arianna nods her head as she begins to calm down. Will is rubbing her back until the sobs cease. He places a soft kiss on her forehead and continues to whisper soothing things in her ear as Sonny watches from the doorway. The sight breaks Sonny's heart. Watching this little girl, who has gone through so much in her young life, have these nightmares. And the only place she can seek refuge and feel safe is in her father's arm. Sonny can see how broken Will looks when his daughter is like this. And all Sonny can do is stand back, which kills him. When all he wants to do is protect both of them from all this pain.

"I'm gonna go," Sonny whispers to Will as he closes the door.

Will nods his head in assent. "Do you want to talk to me about what happened in your dream?"

Arianna shakes her head no. "Stay daddy. No leave."

"Sweetie, I'm not going anywhere."

"No leave, daddy. No leave," Arianna starts crying again.

"I'm not going anywhere, okay?"

Arianna nods her head in understanding, but still continues to cry. She keeps whispering,"No leave."

Will hates this. He hates seeing his daughter like this. He hates knowing that she won't be with him all the time anymore. It kills him that Arianna is going back to live with Gabi after tonight. He would do anything to keep her here. And he knows that this is what she wants too. Will just wishes that Gabi could understand that his daughter wants to be with him. That she needs to be with him. Last time they had this discussion, though, it didn't go so well.

_"But Gabi, she cries every time she leaves me."_

_"She's a toddler. She cries all the time."_

_"So you think it's okay that she cries all the time?"_

_"No. I don't. She just gets fussy. The doctor said it's normal."_

_"Gabi, it is not normal. And don't you think it's odd that she has less nightmares when she's with me?"_

_"No. Not really."_

_"You call me when she has these nightmares! Because I am the only one that can calm her down."_

_"Your point?"_

_"Arianna needs me. And I need her. Don't you understand what you are doing to our daughter? She always begs to stay with me."_

_"Because you're the fun parent, right? Because she loves you more, right?"_

_"I didn't say that."_

_"You didn't have to."_

_"Gabi, don't you see what our daughter wants?"_

_"She's not living with you full-time. I have custody. We have arrangements. Plus, she's three. She doesn't know what she wants."_

_"Are you serious?"_

_"Absolutely. She's mine. We aren't having this discussion again."_

_"She's ours, Gabi! She's ours," Will yells out._

_"I'm done talking about this with you."_

Will just wishes he could make Gabi see how much his daughter needs him. And how much he needs her. Above everything else, Will wishes he could make all the nightmares go away.

"Wanna sleep with daddy tonight?"

"Yes, daddy," Arianna whispers, between sobs.

Will stands up with his daughter holding on tightly to him. He grabs all her pajamas and lays it on his bed. Then brings her to the bathroom so she can take a bath and get ready for bed.

After the bath, Will gets her all ready for bed and lays her down. She refuses to go to sleep without him laying next to her. He does his usual routine when she sleeps with him. Will pulls her daughter to him, so she is nestled into his side and sings her their song. Tonight it is especially hard for him to get through it, because she truly is her daddy's little girl.

After he finished the song, he notices that she has fallen asleep. He gently slides out of bed, not to disturb her. Then quietly walks out to the living room. But as he sits there, he realizes the silence is deafening. Will decides to call Sonny, mainly to apologize for the fact that he basically made him walk home this evening. And also, he realizes that he needs him so much right now. Will isn't sure how Sonny has so quickly become the person he depends on the most, but he doesn't care right now. Because all Will knows is that he needs his friend so badly in this moment. _Friend? Or is it boyfriend? Have we made anything official? Does one date make us an official couple? , _Will questions himself.

Will picks up his phone and calls Sonny. "Hey."

"Hey. How are you doing?" Sonny asks, concerned.

"Not great, honestly."

"Do you need me to come over? Because I can."

"No. You don't have to do that. I wouldn't ask you to come over, especially after I basically made you walk home today."

"You didn't ask. I offered. And it wasn't that long of a walk."

"I'm sorry. It's just that-"

"Don't apologize," Sonny interrupts. "And if you need me to come over, I will."

"I need you," Will whispers.

* * *

Sonny arrives at Will's apartment in 15 minutes. Will popped up off the couch when he heard the gentle knock on his door. He had just been sitting there in silence. Waiting.

The second Will sees Sonny, he just breaks down. He lets all of his emotions consume him. He has been strong all day for his daughter, but he has finally reached his breaking point. Sonny pulls Will into his arms and just holds him. He is rubbing Will's back and stroking his hair. Sonny is doing his best to stay strong for Will, but seeing him like this just kills him.

"Shhhh," Sonny whispers into Will's ear, soothingly. "It's okay. I'm right here."

Will is holding on to Sonny for dear life. He feels like if he let's go, everything will just fall to pieces. This is the only thing stabilizing him. This is the only thing keeping him grounded.

They just stand there in the doorway for a couple of minutes, until Will has finally stopped crying. Sonny wipes the tears from Will's eyes and places a soft kiss on his lips.

"How about we go sit down?" Sonny asks.

Will nods his head. After Sonny closes the door, he takes Will's hand and walks them over to the couch. Will sits down, then Sonny sits down next to him. Sonny pulls Will into his arms. Will lays his head on Sonny's chest, as Sonny wraps his arm around Will.

"Thank you," Will whispers to Sonny.

"For what?"

"Coming over. You really didn't have to. I'm sure you have so many better things to do than deal with me."

"Right now, you are the most important thing, okay?"

Will nods his head. "Do you have to work in the morning?"

"Nope. I'm off tomorrow, too."

"Good. Because I know I am going to need a friend tomorrow after she leaves."

"I would like to think I am more than just a friend now," Sonny smiles.

"Well, I wasn't sure if we had defined this," Will gestures between the two of them, looking up into Sonny's warm, brown eyes. "I didn't want to call you my boyfriend, if that's not what you want."

"You have to be kidding me, Will. That's all I want."

"Okay," Will whispers. "I am really going to need my boyfriend tomorrow."

Sonny leans down a places a soft kiss on his boyfriend's lips.


End file.
